Love
by djinni14
Summary: Kate Beckett thinks she understands what love is or at least what it should be. Richard Castle has absolutely no idea what love is. They are both about to be schooled in the art of love. ... That can only be found, ... In the Twilight Zone! - NOW COMPLETE!
1. Chapter 1

**LOVE**

 **Chapter 1**

 _(Insert theme music)_

 _"In tonights episode our two players are going to demonstrate that love is not only blind, but that it can come from many sources. One of which can only be found ... in The Twilight Zone!"_

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"Who says romance is dead?" Lanie was smiling widely since she had the perfect guy for Kate. …Again.

"I do. Every Saturday night," Kate answered distractedly as she looked over the dead body.

"A little lipstick wouldn't hurt," Lanie commented while still avoiding the body.

Kate, however, was not amused and gave Lanie a dirty look. Lanie was ready though. "I'm just sayin'. It wouldn't hurt to actually look like you want to enjoy your date."

"Oh, just like the last blind date you set me up with?" If Kate had taken a gun with her she might've actually used it on him.

Lanie bristled defensively about her latest choice of a blind date for Kate. "And what was wrong with Brad? He had the chiseled good looks that you're attracted to and he had rock hard abs. Plus he was on the FDNY Calendar. He was Mr. July. He was perfect for you. Just your type."

"MY TYPE! MY **TYPE**? Does _my type_ start the date after we sit down for dinner, before we can even look at the menu and I quote _,_ _You want to have sex later?_ unquote." Kate gave her friend yet another dirty look and challenged her over her latest pick.

"OUCH!" Lanie hadn't considered that he would open his big mouth. "Okay, so he wasn't the one, but I've got one that–" Kate interrupted her, shaking her head.

"Lanie, stop, please. If I'm going to find the right guy, I'm going to do it on my terms. Not with one of the guys out of your black book who's only looking for a one night stand. I've had it with one night stands." Kate's whole body sagged. And while she hated talking about her personal life, especially next to a dead body with the boys not that far away, she did – a little.

"What I want is to find someone I can jump into it with. Just jump and not worry about falling or making a mistake. Someone to love and love me back. Who'll love me for who I am, not because of what he sees when he looks at me." Kate then challenged her big time. "Is there one of those in your little black book?"

Lanie sighed. "You want a knight in shining armor on a white horse to come charging in and swoop you up so you can live happily ever after. Honey, I hate to break it to you but those guys don't exist or if they do, some other woman has already found him and married him."

"He doesn't have to have shiny armor or a white horse. He just needs to love me. ME! So can you please stop, Lanie?" Kate had reached the absolute end of Lanie's black book.

"Fine, but what you want isn't just going to show up in your bedroom and proclaim his love for you. You have to get out there. Date a few losers so you know he's the right one." Kate couldn't just sit at home, reading a book while relaxing in her tub with a glass of wine.

"I know, I know. Just…I'll find him some day. That day just isn't going to be today, or here." Kate looked around. They were in some side alley where someone had dumped their dead body.

Their entire conversation ended when Espo showed up. He looked at his notes. "So far no one saw anything. It was phoned in anonymously. This area is filled with places that are rented weekly and owned by landlords that care little about their buildings." The people that lived there would tell them nothing, either.

"Or their tenants." Kate knew the place, too. She got back into her job and looked down at Lanie. "Cause of death?"

"Stab wound, perfectly placed, it looks like. Slipped past two ribs and stuck the heart. Death was nearly instantaneous. I might be able to get an impression of the blade for you after I get the body back to the morgue." Lanie kept looking the body over.

"ID?" Kate looked down at Lanie who shook her head. "So who's our vic?"

"Better question: Who would hire a killer to kill him?" Espo saw it as a hit. "Even gangbangers that still use knives aren't that good."

"Find out if he has any defensive wounds. If not, he was either surprised or he knew his killer. But why a stab to the heart? If it was a surprise hit, why isn't his throat slit?" It was quicker and easier if you attacked from behind.

Kate looked at Espo. "Get Ryan; I want you two to scan the area. This is a body dump. Tire tracks, camera footage, blood drops. From which direction did they come?" She glanced at Lanie. "Let me know when you have something," Then she walked off toward her cruiser.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate sat her dinner down on the kitchen counter. She'd stayed at work really late putting everything she had up on the white board, then had stared at it for she didn't know how long. Still staring at it hadn't gained her anything. It wasn't until the bullpen had gotten really quiet that she noticed what time it was.

She hadn't eaten much and knew she should eat something. So she stopped and got her favorite Chinese dish and brought it home with her. One glass of wine, her dinner, and she was sitting on the floor using her coffee table as her dining table.

Everything was quiet, just the way she liked it. Okay, maybe just a little too quiet. She was alone in her apartment. All alone. There were times when it got to her and she wished for a different life. It was just that she had made her choices and she hadn't yet succeeded in reaching the goals of those choices.

Her thoughts took her focus off of her meal and she actually stopped eating. She was just drinking as she looked out into her empty apartment. Another Saturday night and she was all alone. She hadn't even met anyone that she wanted to date in what seemed to be a very long time.

Kate shook her head. It was time to take her mind off her troubles. So with wine glass in hand, she got up and went over to her bookcase to look for a book to read. Something to take her mind off of everything. She ran her fingers over the spines of some of her books. Problem was she had read most of them. "Hmm." Kate found a title that she didn't remember having read before. "Demons." She couldn't remember what had possessed her to buy it when she had found it, but she had. She pulled it down and reread the inside jacket that would tell her about the book.

 _In a future uncomfortably close to the present day, the apocalypse has surpassed all expectations. Hideous demons roam the streets in an orgy of terror, drawing pleasure from torturing humans as sadistically as possible. Divided into seven clans, these grisly invaders–gnashing, writhing, bloodthirsty monsters–seem horrifically to belong in our world._

 _Ira, a young San Francisco artist, becomes involved with a strange group of scientists and philosophers desperately trying to end the bloody siege. Yet through it all, Ira continues to paint–for in his canvasses lie crucial clues to the demons' origins._

 _Yet the demons draw their strength from an all-too-familiar evil–a deadly malevolence supported by some of the greatest powers on earth, concealed beneath the trappings of status, success, and abused power. Ira and his allies– including a compelling young seeress–come to believe these demons didn't just appear. They were summoned. But the most shocking revelation is yet to come._

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate moaned softly. A lot of things were traveling through her mind: Lanie, no boyfriend, work, her mother's murder, demons, dead bodies. It was all so…evil and never-ending.

She truly wished that there was someone. Someone to love and love her back. Their hearts and souls were one. She could just dive in and forget all of it. Love him and be loved in return.

Then Kate saw him! He was naked and standing right in front of her. His face was in shadow, not that she was looking at his face. All she had eyes for was his cock. It was amazing to look at. It was the most perfect cock she had ever seen in her life. It had to be at least two feet long if not longer. It was also large around. It was easily thicker than her upper arm. Not only that but the head was large.

The entire cock was incredible. Kate reached out her hand, desperately wanting to wrap her fingers around it. It was just that she couldn't get her fingertips to touch her thumb as she wrapped her hand around it. She ended up using both hands. It was silky smooth to the touch. The veins in it were impressive just to look at. However, it was the head that held her attention. It was the most perfect helmet of a cock she had ever seen. As she gazed at the head, she barely noticed her hands stroking up and down the entire length of the cock. It was perfect!

Just staring at it and stroking its length was starting to get her wet. She could no longer resist and leaned in closer so she could lick it. A moan escaped her lips at the first lick. Drawing her tongue back into her mouth she tasted him. It was deliciously amazing.

It was huge, beautiful, soft and slick, and luscious to taste. Kate reached out and licked the glans of the helmet as her hands continued to stroke its length. All she saw was this massive cock. It really was perfection.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate pushed her butt forward on the sofa just a little more as she watched his head lean down between her legs. She was wet and beyond horny. What she had really hoped for was that he would push that mammoth cock into her pussy and fuck her senseless.

Then she felt the touch of his tongue on her lips. She moaned from his touch.

Kate grabbed handfuls of hair and placed his head right where she wanted it, where she needed it to be. God, but his tongue was talented. Then suddenly his tongue was inside her. It was enough that it had her screaming out her pleasure at her first orgasm.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate found herself on her hands and knees. She knew what was coming next and her pussy, her soul ached for it.

She raised her head and looked behind her. All she saw was that immense cock aimed right for her opening. Then she felt it press against her lips. She wanted that thing inside her. To feel it reach depths of her pussy that no cock had ever reached in her life. She was all set to beg him to fuck her when she felt his head slip past her lips and into her.

She wanted him to fuck her so very badly. To feel that monster pounding her pussy into submission. Her pussy needed a good pounding and this massive cock was more than capable of doing just that.

Kate felt his body hit hers. He was inside her finally. All of that cock was deep inside her.

Feeling it slide back out of her and then slide right back in had her moaning from the feeling of being so full. It only took a few strokes until she could hear and feel him slamming his cock deep inside her.

The sound of his flesh slapping against hers. The feeling of having his gigantic cock pumping in and out of her. She was sure the only reason she was still on her knees was because of the bones in her legs and the fact that his hands were holding her in place.

Her legs were jelly and she was moaning loudly and crying out with every pound of his cock into her. His cock truly was perfect.

He didn't stop fucking her. She didn't want him to ever stop fucking her. She just needed one more bit of pleasure. Just one.

Suddenly his hands were on her breasts instead of holding her ass in place. Each hand pinched her nipples hard! It was enough that it had her screaming through her second orgasm.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate was back to sitting on the sofa with both of her hands stroking his enormous cock. It was still wet from having been inside her pussy. She could even taste herself on it. The combination of tastes was beyond amazing. The taste of his cock had been incredible. The taste of them both was beyond words.

She played with his balls while she licked his cock from the base to the tip, where she stuck her tongue into the slit. She heard him moan loudly. She smiled as she did it again. Kate continued to play with his balls while she tongued the opening at the tip. His moans were getting louder. She so wanted to taste his come. It was the one last thing she wanted. To taste his come in her mouth. To feel it flow down her throat.

She gave his cock another lick from the base to the tip as she heard him growl; her hands felt his cock spasm. She eagerly placed her open mouth over the tip and felt him spurt into her mouth. It was a lot and she hurriedly tried to drink it all down. Then he spurted out another large amount that actually escaped her mouth. He spurted two more times and Kate did her best to swallow it all.

His cock actually started to shrink a little. She used her finger to wipe his come off her chin and licked her finger clean. His come had the most amazing taste she had ever tasted in her life. All the other men's come had been a little salty and just a little off. She'd always done her best to not taste it and just let it spurt down her open throat. His come had her searching her mouth for every last drop.

He was the best, the very best!

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate woke up slowly and at first she was a little confused. Looking around she saw that she was in her living room. Her dinner was still on the coffee table, as was her glass of wine, which was empty.

The next thing she noticed was that she was lying on her sofa _and_ she was naked!

Then her mind remembered something. "That cock!" It had been monstrously huge, it had also been completely perfect. Even now what she really wanted to do was wrap herself around it. Stroke it, kiss it, lick it, and have it fuck her senseless.

FUCK HER!

Kate sat up and placed a hand to search her pussy lips. She found that she was still wet. "One hell of a dream." It couldn't have been anything else. No one alive could possibly have a cock that big. That big, that tasty, that completely amazing.

Had she? Had they? Kate looked around and saw her clothes were scattered about the living room floor.

"Just a dream." Why couldn't it have been real? It was everything she had ever wanted.

The only real problem was that she couldn't see his face. She couldn't picture much of his body either. All she really remembered was that cock. That impossibly huge cock.

Her logic told her that there was no way that cock would ever fit inside her. It would split her wide open. That and no woman's vagina was anywhere near that long. If all of that cock had been inside her it would be literally hitting her heart or a lung with every stroke.

There should be blood everywhere. It was real enough in her mind that Kate looked straight down. She saw a stain and her shoulders tensed, but she quickly realized it wasn't blood. The wine had been white so she assumed she had spilled her glass.

Her next thought was concern about what time it was. Looking at her dad's watch told her she had time to take a shower. She could stop for a little breakfast and a good cup of coffee on her way into work, not that swill that the machine in the breakroom made. That stuff was almost enough to get her to swear off coffee completely.

Kate started to stand up. This, though, caused just a touch of pain. It was enough pain and such a surprising pain that she sank back down on the sofa again. It also had her looking down and using a hand to search her pussy once more. The pain was familiar enough. It was the pain of having had sex after so long of an absence. Her muscles were complaining to her.

"It was a dream," she muttered to herself. It couldn't have been anything else.

Kate ignored the pain and went into her bedroom to retrieve her weapon. From there she searched each and every window to make sure they were all locked from the inside. Next came the front door. It was locked and the chain was in place. The windows and door were the only ways in and out.

It didn't make any sense to her. The pain told her that she'd had sex last night. But all the other evidence, what little she had, said it was impossible.

Her memory of last night was fading fast. Even the vision of that cock was fading.

Since it was impossible, she tried her hardest to remember the feeling of the best sex of her life. "Too bad it was just a dream," she murmured wistfully. Kate wished it was so much more. What she could still remember told her that it had been perfect. Just perfect.


	2. Chapter 2

**LOVE**

 **Chapter 2**

 _It is now one month later_

Kate was happy to join Lanie for drinks. Except that she didn't understand why they were meeting here. It wasn't their usual place. Plus she'd had to park her car several blocks away. As a result she was already in a bit of a sour mood.

She'd even come straight from the precinct so she was packing all of her normal gear for work. She was at least happy that it didn't look like a cop bar. It wasn't that she hated cop bars, it was just that she saw cops all day long at work. Besides, how was she going to meet anyone that wasn't a cop if she didn't go where cops didn't usually go?

Stepping inside she was hit with the typical tang of alcohol. It allowed her a moment to stop and breathe it in. Compared to the myriad scents at work it was a welcome change. She just didn't want to smell it all day long. Thanks to her dad being an alcoholic, or recovering alcoholic, it wasn't something she wanted for hours on end.

Kate scanned the room looking for Lanie. She assumed her friend would be there first. She saw someone else before she saw Lanie, though. She was conflicted between being happy and being concerned. This could be good or it could be really bad.

She pulled out her phone and made a call. Satisfied that they would arrive in a few minutes, she continued looking for Lanie and spied her sitting alone at a booth. "Hi, Lanie." Kate took a seat opposite from her.

"Hey, girlfriend." Lanie had never considered that Kate wouldn't show up, however she was a little late. Just late enough that Lanie was starting to wonder.

"You been here before?" Kate looked around at the decor and spotted him again. Her happy-to-see-Lanie face vanished and was replaced for a moment with a _You_ _-_ _come_ _-_ _over_ _-_ _here_ _-_ _and_ _-_ _I'll_ _-_ _shoot_ _-_ _you_ put her happy-to-see-Lanie face back on and looked at her.

"A couple of times. I thought you might like a change of scenery." Lanie also had an ulterior motive for choosing this place.

Kate didn't see anything different, really. There was a small dance floor. Tiny might be a better word. A couple of pool tables, a dart board, even a basketball hoop game. The place wasn't full yet, if it ever did get full, but there were a decent number of people. It also looked like they were the only women in the place. That alone had this place off of Kate's list in the future. Lanie could come here alone as far as she was concerned.

Kate waved the server over to order a beer. She took a few more points off of ever coming here again when she found most of the selections were local domestic beers. She chose the one and only beer that wasn't local.

"So how are you and Javi?" Kate knew that the two were dating off and on lately.

Lanie suddenly looked pissed. "OFF!"

"I'm sure he didn't mean it." Kate knew Javi was good at his job, he just wasn't a gentleman when it came to women. He was prone to opening his big mouth and not using his filters.

"Oh, he meant it all right." Lanie took a large drink of her beer that she'd already ordered.

"What did he do now? I'll remind him how stupid he is tomorrow." Kate loved Javi as a part of her family. She didn't want to see her family being angry with each other.

"He–" Lanie was interrupted when the server arrived with two beers for Kate. They both looked the same.

"Compliments of the guy over there," he told her and waited a moment.

Kate looked at who he meant and saw it was the man she'd noticed earlier. She pushed the extra beer across the table. "Take it back. I don't want it." She waited until he took the extra beer and walked away.

Lanie turned to look. "He's not bad and it was free." Lanie didn't see anything wrong with him. He wasn't going to win the Mr. America award, but he looked like he worked out. He had muscles.

"I have my reasons." Kate took a peek out the window to see if they'd shown up yet and didn't see anything.

"I promised not to hook you up again, but Kate, how are you going to get a date if you dismiss everyone that even looks at you?" She loved Kate and was her best friend. It was just that she didn't understand her sometimes.

"I don't see anyone in here that I'd want to date and certainly not him." She wanted to see him somewhere else and before he left so she didn't have to hunt him down.

"Are we back to the knight on a white horse again?" Was that what Kate was looking for in a guy? Or was it something else entirely?

"No! He just doesn't need to be–" That same beer landed back on their table – right in front of Kate. She looked up and saw it was that man. She gave him a dirty look; he was butting in.

"It's yours," he rumbled in a deep voice. "If you didn't like it, why order it? What do you want?" He would order her something stronger if she wanted. He even had a touch of powder he could add to it to make sure she came home with him.

Kate saw movement outside and gave a quick look. It was the car she'd ordered. "I've got something for you, too." She reached down to her waist, released her cuffs, and dangled them on her finger.

He smiled. "I'll be happy to use those." He meant tie her to the bed and do what he wanted to her. She might even enjoy it for a bit.

"These aren't for me, big boy. They're for you." Kate's guys spotted her and started walking her way. "I think you'll like it," she teased.

"I think you'd like it even more if you wore them." He smiled widely at her.

"You can wear mine or you can wear theirs." Kate nodded at the boys in blue. "You're under arrest."

He turned around to look and saw two uniformed officers standing behind him, ready for him to do something stupid. "You **BITCH!** " He hadn't been expecting a woman that looked this good to be a cop and not in this bar.

"Arrest him," Kate instructed the officers.

He suddenly spun in place and threw a punch. His fist hit the smaller officer square in the jaw and sent him careening into the table behind him. The other officer responded by pulling out his taser and they all watched the jackass jerk a few times before he crashed to the floor.

"He's all yours," Kate told the officer with a satisfied grin.

"Thank you, ma'am." He had recognized the guy as well. Getting credit for this collar was going to look good on his record.

Both officers and the jackass were on their way out and he was being stuffed into their cruiser.

"You know you could have told me." Lanie wasn't exactly happy. This hadn't worked out how she had planned it.

"You were too busy trying to get me to date him instead of arrest him." Kate smiled back at her.

"How was I supposed to know he was wanted?" Lanie said defensively. She worked with dead guys, not wanted ones. She had also decided that she was never coming back here again.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

After she got home Kate decided not to mix wine with the beer she'd had earlier. Her talk with Lanie after getting rid of that guy had been nice. They'd even managed to catch up for the last month. Kate was sure that Lanie was now satisfied that she was doing fine without dating any of her guys from her black book.

Problem was it was another Saturday night and there she was…in her apartment, all alone yet again. She could go out to watch a midnight movie. She could search for a book that she hadn't read yet. It was just that she hadn't gone book shopping lately so wasn't sure she even had one. She didn't much care for watching TV so she didn't even own one. She and Lanie had decided to call it an early night since both worked the next day. So she decided she might as well go to bed and get a good night's sleep instead of going to bed late and getting up about four or five hours later.

Kate stripped and threw her clothes into her hamper and went into the bathroom to wash off her makeup and the workday's grunge. She looked herself over after washing. She was thin, but in her mind she was athletic. As far as she was concerned her eating habits didn't have anything to do with her being thin. She worked out at least once a week and did yoga at least once a week as well. Plus she used the gym at the precinct from time to time.

She ran a finger over each of her scars. In her younger days she had actually worked as a model for a time. Her skin had been perfect back then. Now she had permanent marks and the occasional raised welt all over the place. She would never get hired for that job now. She'd made her choice and this was part of that cost.

Kate turned out the lights and slipped into bed. She pounded on her pillow to get it into shape before laying her head down. Then she cursed and got up out of bed. Walking into the living room she located her phone, brought it with her into the bedroom, and plugged it in. She couldn't believe she'd left it in the other room. She never did that! If the precinct had called with a body she would've missed it and that was unacceptable.

She got back into bed except now she was restless and began tossing and turning. Her screw up meant her mind was active and refused to shut down. Suddenly her thoughts were on what life would be like if she was married or at least had a boyfriend. He could be there to help her get out of her head. But she wasn't and she didn't have one.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate rolled over and saw it. _IT_ was a massive cock that had to be at least two feet long if not longer. Not only was it long, it was large. It was easily larger than her upper arm. It was amazing to look at. She sat up and tried to wrap a hand around it only to find it was too big for that. She ended up wrapping fingers from both hands around it.

It was huge, it was smooth, and it was beautiful. It had her running her hands up and down the entire length of it. She would occasionally rub her palm over the tip of the stunning head. It was beautiful! Kate leaned forward to get a closer look at it as she continued to rub her hands up and down the full length of the cock in front of her. This cock was the most perfect thing. It was a dream come true.

She could resist no longer. She ran her tongue from the base to the tip. As good as it looked, it tasted even better. So much so that she almost stopped stroking it just so she could lick all of it over and over again.

Kate pulled it down so that the tip was right in front of her mouth. Her tongue glided out to play with the slit at the top.

What she wanted was to have it in her mouth, so she opened her mouth wide and pressed the head of this magnificent cock into her mouth. It fit so easily. All she had to do was open her throat like she did when she chugged beers and down her throat went this cock. Kate swirled her tongue all around the cock and pulled it back out of her mouth before forcing it to plunge down her throat yet again. She pressed hard enough that she found her nose touching his stomach.

She pulled it back out and licked it all over while she gently massaged the balls at the base.

Kate went back to stroking it while she looked it over. It looked like it was just a little red. Like it was sunburned or something. It was just that it wasn't a bright red like a sunburn was, but just a bit deeper red.

She traced her fingers over each of the veins that were the most pronounced. This was followed by her licking each one. A touch of white oozed out of the top. She licked it up instantly and hummed from the taste of his precum. His come had an amazing taste. She wanted more, a lot more.

Kate went back to stroking this cock while licking the length before plunging it down her throat yet again. Just as she did it a second time she felt his cock spasm and climax in her mouth.

There was so much of it that it was difficult to swallow it all, however, all of it tasted so spectacularly marvelous.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate placed her hands on either side of his face and kissed him. His lips were so soft and yet firm, very sensuous. She felt his tongue stroke her lower lip; she willingly opened her mouth and slipped her tongue into his mouth. His cock and come had tasted so very good and now even the inside of his mouth was amazing.

She wanted to kiss him forever. When she stopped so she could get some air, she missed his kiss something terrible; she forced another kiss. This one was hard and needy.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate was lying on her back with her lover above her. He was kissing her again only this time he started kissing his way down her chest. She knew what this usually meant and she so wanted to feel his lips and tongue on her pussy. But he lingered at one of her breasts. Other men had done that before though they'd all just given her breasts what amounted to just a moment of time.

His hand tweaked her other nipple while his lips and tongue played with the other. Then he was palming both of her breasts while his teeth nipped at her nipple.

Kate held his face in place. He was spending time at her breasts and what he was doing caused an amazing feeling. She moaned and arched her breasts up to get more friction. Then he bit one nipple while squeezing the other hard and Kate had her first orgasm. It was her very first breast orgasm of her life. She had never thought it was possible but he had done it.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate looked down and saw her legs were spread wide. His hands were at each ankle and were forcing her legs apart. She also saw his magnificent cock at her entrance. She willed him to push all of the cock inside her.

She watched as his cock slipped past her lips and into her. The feeling of just having his head inside her was amazing. He was spreading her lips to accommodate his size. Then she watched as he slowly pushed all of his cock deep inside her.

As he pushed his cock inside her, he pushed her legs toward her head. She saw her legs starting to reach where her head was. As she looked down she saw that all of his cock was deep inside her. Every inch of him was inside her. The feeling of being so full was so totally amazing. No lover before him had ever done this. As good as it felt, she wanted him to fuck her. To start ramming his massive cock inside her until they both climaxed in a combined scream.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate slowly opened her eyes. Everything looked familiar except that she noticed that she was naked in her bed. She usually didn't sleep totally naked. She usually slept in a t-shirt and shorts.

Then moments of last night began filtering into her brain. She'd been fucked last night. She had been spectacularly fucked until she had screamed out her orgasm.

Sliding her hand down, she found that her pussy was still just a touch wet. Her forehead creased in confusion; she knew she'd come home alone last night. She hadn't drunk that much and she had even arrested someone at the bar with Lanie. Technically the officers had arrested him, but she had called for them.

There was also something familiar about all of it. Her memory of it was fading fast, but his cock had been amazingly large. Far larger than was possible. Even some of the largest dildos she'd seen in sex stores hadn't even come close.

Kate looked down. What she felt definitely wasn't blood and there wasn't evidence of any, either. A cock that big should've split her wide open and left her bleeding badly. Not only that but anything that long would have given her internal injuries.

"A dream, it was just a dream." What other option was there? No one could have a cock that big. As much as she would love to find a real cock that big so she could wrap not just her fingers around but her entire body, she knew it couldn't be real.

"The most perfect cock." That was what told her that it was impossible.

Kate rolled out of bed after checking the clock. She needed to take a shower and get ready for work. Doing so caused just a touch of pain. Muscles that hadn't been worked for far too long were arguing back at her.

It was enough that she stopped and wondered just how much of a dream it had been. She cautiously pulled her weapon out of her end table and searched her apartment. What she found was, as before, all of the window latches were locked and the front door was locked and security chained from the inside. The window in her bedroom, the two in her living room, and the front door were the only ways in and out. She even opened the refrigerator to see if anyone was hiding inside.

The pain was fading as she searched. A dream was the only thing that made any sense to her. Nothing else was possible.

"Just a stupid dream," Kate muttered, not really liking that idea. "Why can't he be real?" Someone with that big of a cock, that could fuck her that good, was someone she could learn to love.

What else was there?


	3. Chapter 3

**Love**

 **Chapter 3**

 _It is now one month later_

Kate hadn't really thought about her erotic dreams in weeks. She'd even dismissed Lanie's comment that pointed out that she was acting a little twitchy. To be honest, though, Kate had noticed that her ability to focus on her work was being affected by something.

At the moment she was working on some of her backed up paperwork from her most recent case. She was blinking and trying to focus her eyes. What she was writing didn't look like her own writing. It was a bit messy and she could do better than that.

"Coffee, I just need coffee," Kate muttered as she got up, gathered everything, and headed for the elevator. "I'm going for coffee…real coffee. Be right back," she said to her partners and walked quickly to the elevator. Once outside she turned and headed down the street. The closest coffee shop was just a block down the street. Shouldn't take her any time at all.

Kate stopped at an intersection and looked around. "Where the hell is it?" It should be right there. Confused, she looked up at the street names. "How did I get here!?" She had turned the wrong direction leaving the precinct. "I'm losing it." She turned around, walked back past the precinct, and easily found the coffee shop. She obviously needed coffee, however, she was beginning to wonder if her normal order was going to be enough.

"I need a cup of your strongest coffee." She couldn't think of what that would be but was sure he would know.

"We've got something new. It's called Death Wish. It's supposed to be the world's strongest coffee." He personally hadn't tried it yet and actually hadn't sold any.

"I'll take it. The largest cup you have. And can you add a spot of vanilla, please?" Kate said quickly. The stronger the better sounded just perfect to her.

"One large cup of Death Wish coffee with a dash of vanilla. That'll be $15.99 plus tax." Kate paid in cash and impatiently waited for her change.

The barista smiled as he handed over the cup. "Thanks, Brian." Kate took it and walked to the door.

"Let me know what you think of it." His boss wanted feedback for that coffee. He saw her wave a hand at him.

Kate took a sip once outside. " **WOW!** " That one sip hit her system like a runaway freight train. The taste wasn't bad but it almost had her head spinning. "I said vanilla, not tequila." She was thinking it was spiked with something other than her beloved vanilla.

Still she noticed that her ability to do her paperwork had improved. But before she'd even drunk all of her coffee or finished all of her reports, it had lost its effectiveness. She huffed an annoyed breath as she got up and went to get coffee from the break room. While that was a good distraction it didn't really help. Though the bad taste seemed to have almost the same effect as the coffee she had gotten earlier.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate managed to get her key in the lock and felt disoriented as she made her way to her bedroom. Everything went on the bed as she stripped, getting ready to take a shower. Coffee hadn't seemed to have helped so she was hoping a shower would do the trick.

She'd tried adjusting her shower from straight freezing cold water to almost skin burning hot water, and while the shock of each had helped for a moment, it hadn't worked long term.

Now she was sitting on her sofa in shorts and a t-shirt. Weeks earlier she'd found a book she had obviously started reading and had fallen asleep while reading. She'd put it away and now she was up looking for it. Maybe getting lost in a book would help. "Demons." Kate remembered that was the book. Something about the planet going to hell with demons walking everywhere while making sure humankind suffered.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

The cock of her dreams was right in front of her. She'd actually missed seeing it. She had missed touching it and stroking the entire length with both hands. It was massive, it was smooth and it was perfect. A quick lick told her that the taste was completely amazing. She licked the entire length from the base to the tip where she stuck her tongue into the slit.

Kate smiled as she heard him hum with pleasure as she licked him. Then she took that enormous head into her mouth and actually heard him moan. She swirled her tongue all around it.

She pulled it out, looked it over, then opened her throat and pressed it into the back of her throat. She didn't stop until her nose touched his stomach. Pulling it back out again she licked all over the head, before pushing it back down her throat.

Kate was enjoying herself immensely as she licked the cock of her dreams. What she really wanted now was to taste him, to have him climax into her mouth. "Come for me." She sped up her stroking the long shaft while she played with the helmet with her tongue.

She heard him groan loudly as she placed his head in her mouth and felt him spurt a large load into her mouth. His come tasted so amazing. It was the best thing she'd ever tasted. She'd only just swallowed the first when he spurted a second time. It had Kate humming from the taste as that went down her throat only to be followed by another spurt.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate ran her hands through his hair as she felt his lips and tongue dancing over her pussy. She loved having a guy eating her pussy, but what he was doing transcended what any man previous had ever done for her.

"OH, GOD!" He had been hitting her clit and a spot just inside her over and over again. "GOD, YES! …I'M GOING TO COME!" Kate felt her orgasm wash over her body and it had her forcing his face into her core.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate was on her hands and knees on the floor and turned to look back. She watched as she felt his cock touch her outer lips and she willed for him to enter her. She wanted to be fucked so very badly. To have her pussy pounded into submission. She watched until she was sure all of him was deep inside her. She'd never felt so full in her life. Having that huge cock inside her was just what she wanted, what she needed.

Her arms had turned to rubber and she was barely able to stay up on her hands as she felt his cock pounding into her. She could hear his balls slapping against her backside. She was moaning and whimpering with each stroke.

Then suddenly her nipples were being squeezed…hard. That had her screaming out an orgasm as she was sure her lover climaxed inside her.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate opened her eyes and looked around until her mind caught up. She was on the living room floor. **NAKED!**

"That dream again." She really wished that it wasn't a dream. That there really was someone with a cock that mammoth that would actually fit inside her. It was just that her mind told her that anything that big would split her open and leave her bleeding. Not to mention what a cock that size would do to her internal organs. Plus how that thing even got in her mouth let alone down her throat was impossible.

Kate moved and felt the familiar feeling of having been fucked, but it wasn't that bad.

"The lights are on." She searched her memory for what little she could still remember. Had she seen his face? All she could really remember was his cock.

She placed her hand at her pussy and found that she was still wet. Lifting up her hand to look at it showed that there was something white on her fingers. "WHAT!" She spread her legs and bent down to look. She saw a white fluid leaking out. "NO WAY!" She'd seen different fluids leaking out and soiling her panties before. But this fluid looked familiar in a way that had her scared.

Kate carefully got up and retrieved a coffee cup from her kitchen. What she wanted to do was go to the bathroom but feared it was too far away, so she squatted down in the kitchen, placed the cup below her, and squeezed. After each squeeze she looked into the cup and saw a white fluid starting to accumulate in the bottom. After several more attempts she stopped and stood up with her cup. Looking inside showed that the bottom was full of fluid. She gave it a quick sniff and her mind refused to believe what she was smelling. She didn't dare taste it to be sure.

She searched her kitchen until she found her really old roll of plastic wrap. After encasing the cup she searched for a plastic zip bag to seal the cup in.

Kate placed it on the counter and stared at it. What was in that cup just wasn't possible. It was completely impossible, actually.

She was still staring at the cup when she heard her cell phone ringing. It snapped her out of it and had her heading to her bedroom to find it. She found it with everything else – sitting on her bed. That alone was trouble. It meant she hadn't plugged it in to charge it.

It was the precinct; there was a dead body.

She had already taken a really long shower but she needed to clean up just a little. Even doing just that had her staring at what she used to clean her pussy with. It looked like she was still leaking that same fluid. She refused to call it what she feared that it was. It did get her to use a pad to catch whatever was left of that fluid.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"Hi Lanie." Kate had hoped her friend would be assigned to this case.

"Kate…why are you so chipper this early in the morning?" Lanie was lucky she wasn't still asleep. After all it was 2:12 in the morning. Thanks to this case she was likely to never get any sleep.

Kate simply shrugged.

"What's wrong, girlfriend." There were wrinkles on her face. It was a telltale sign that she was stressed.

Kate stepped in close to her as Lanie looked over the body above her. "Take this and analyze it for me. Let me know what you find." She gave her the coffee cup in a bag.

Lanie took it and looked it over. "You know I don't analyze bad coffee." Even if what was in the cup didn't look anything like coffee.

"It's not coffee. Just analyze it for me…please." While the results would tell Kate a lot it would still leave her with a huge number of questions.

"I will, just as soon as I get back to the morgue." Lanie was now very curious herself so she was going to do it first thing.

"What have we got?" Kate needed to get her head back into this case and off who her mystery lover was. If she was right, it might mean big trouble. "Is she… _frozen_ ?"

"Sure looks like it. I'll let you know once I get her back to the morgue. Telling you when she died isn't likely to happen. Freezing the body will have destroyed a lot of evidence," Lanie replied.

Kate looked around. "A construction site."

"The contractor was all set to pour concrete today when they found the body. If they hadn't looked, they might have never seen her," Ryan commented after looking at his notes.

"If they had her on ice, why get rid of the body now?" One more mystery for Kate to solve. "Fingerprints?" she asked and looked at Lanie.

"If I can hydrate her fingertips without damaging them…maybe. We might have to rely on dental work for this one. Ice from freezing destroys a lot of things. Though just from looking at her I'd say she was frozen not long after dying. Her skin's still in good shape, not much in the way of degradation." Lanie was still looking her over.

"So what killed her?" Kate mused. "Let me know what you find out. Take me to the contractor." She wanted to interview him herself. "Security?" Kate glanced at Ryan as they walked.

Ryan shook his head. "Basic chain link fence, no barbed wire. Anything worth stealing is either locked up or is dangling from a crane." He pointed to the generator that was hanging up high from a crane.

That told Kate anyone could gain access to the site. However, whoever dumped her likely knew about the concrete pour scheduled for today. Or simply hoped for it.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate was at her board as she was writing what she knew on it. "People don't disappear off the face of the earth."

"Sure they do. Quantum physics, alien abductions, Schrödinger's cat. One minute you're getting a hot dog in the park, the next you're fighting off Sleestaks on the far side of a dimensional rift," Ryan quipped.

Kate glared at him for his less than helpful idea. "You've read too many bad science-fiction novels." She was sure there was a more down-to-earth reason. She just needed to figure out what it was.

"I'm going to see if Lanie has anything yet. We really need a name." They were in the dark until they did.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate was going for two reasons, actually. She wanted to know who her dead frozen woman was and what was in that coffee cup. "Hey, Lanie." Kate saw her leaning over a microscope. Lanie, however, was silent as she kept looking at the slide. "What have you got?" Kate wanted to know but really wanted to have Lanie tell her it wasn't what she thought it was.

"That's a lot of swimmers, girlfriend." Lanie straightened up and looked at her. "Where did you get this?" Lanie was beyond curious now.

"WHAT!?" Kate bumped Lanie out of the way to look for herself.

"You knew already, didn't you? You just wanted me to have you tell you something else. So where did you get this sample, Kate?" She wasn't leaving until Lanie got her answer.

Kate just kept looking and all she saw was hundreds of sperm swimming all over the place like they were strung out on PCP or something. "No," Kate whispered.

Lanie confirmed Kate's worst fear. "That is semen, Kate. Semen filled with hundreds if not thousands of sperm, and that's just a small sample. More likely there were millions of the little guys. So where did you get the sample?" Lanie was starting to guess but needed her best friend to come clean and tell her.

"Sperm." Kate stood up and stared at nothing. It had her thinking back to all three times she had had this dream. It was a dream, it just _had_ to be a dream. Unfortunately she had evidence to the contrary.

But his cock was far too big. Impossibly big. Maybe she had dreamed about the size while the sex was real? But that didn't make any sense, either. She had checked her apartment and everything was locked from the inside. There was no way he could get in or get back out.

" **KATE!** " Lanie yelled and watched her turn to look at her with a look of shock and disbelief on her face. "Oh Kate, what have you done?"

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Rick arrived as usual. He was naked and had a massive erection like always.

"Where have you been? I've been calling for you for hours!" She'd actually only called for him once so far, but that was one more than she should've had to do.

Rick walked up to her. She was pretty enough. Her tits weren't all that big but her skin was a pearl white and her hair was a nice red color. That and her penchant for wanting physical sex had kept him coming back.

"Stroke my cock," he commanded and felt her reach out with both hands and start stroking his cock. Her touch was soft this time. But he quickly noticed that her touch was nothing like the woman he had found not long ago. Her voice was a little grating and having sex with her wasn't nearly as pleasant as the other woman. "Lick my cock," Rick demanded. He felt her begin to do as he'd ordered. While she was good at this, she paled in comparison to the other woman.

"You like my cock?" he queried.

She answered, "Yes," during one of her licks.

"You want me to fuck you senseless?" Rick questioned.

"Yes!" She stopped licking his cock and looked up at him.

"You are mine. You belong to me." He wanted to finish this and move on.

"Yes," she murmured, stroking his cock slowly and feeling her pussy starting to get wet in anticipation of being fucked.

"Excellent." Rick reached down and grasping her by both arms, easily lifted her up. "You're coming with me." He smiled wickedly and changed his form to what he really looked like.

A moment later they were just outside of a large building. For him the place was home. To her this place was hotter than hell and it hit her instantly.

"What? Where are we?" She'd trusted him. She didn't know where they were nor how they'd gotten there.

"This is the home of my master. This is the 56th layer of the Abyss, your new home." Rick tightened his hold on her as he marched her inside past all of the guards.

Rick was escorted into _HIS_ presence and bowed deeply. "Master."

"Castle! What have you brought me this time?" Graz'zt inquired and stood up off his throne to approach the two of them.

 _Standing nine feet tall, Graz'zt appear_ _ed_ _as a lithe, muscular_ _humanoid_ _. His skin sh_ _o_ _ne like polished_ _obsidian_ _, and his eyes glitter_ _ed_ _with_ _a_ _malevolent green light. He ha_ _d_ _yellowed fangs, pointed ears, and six slender fingers decorating each hand. He_ _wa_ _s sometimes described as having six small black horns half-hidden amid his thick black hair. He carrie_ _d_ _with him at all times a massive two handed sword that drip_ _ped_ _acid everywhere he_ _went_ _._

"Her name is Meredith, my master. She has white skin, fiery red hair, and likes her sex rough and physical." Rick was sure he would love her…for at least a day or two. About as long as any of the women he was presented with.

Meredith was shocked into silence, which for her was no small feat.

Graz'zt ran a fingernail over her white skin then ran a hand through her red hair. "You've done well, Castle. I approve. I will take her." He was going to take her all right. As often and as hard as he wished.

Rick made it official and permanent. "She is yours, my master. I relinquish control of her to you."

"I don't belong to you!" Meredith shrieked in her grating voice. "What the hell are you?" Except for maybe in a fantasy movie she'd never seen anything like him before.

"SILENCE, BITCH!" Graz'zt backhanded her across her cheek which had her head snapping to one side with a bit of blood spewing out. "Speak again and I will take you now."

Meredith wasn't used to being treated like that. She was special and didn't deserve such treatment. He didn't know who he was dealing with. "I'll speak to you any way I please," she screeched at him and stood her ground. Then she turned to look at Rick. "Take me back…NOW!"

"I am going to enjoy her. Your payment will arrive before the end of the day, Castle. If she pleases me as much as I think I may even give you something extra." Graz'zt smiled widely as his clothing disappeared in an instant.

It was Rick's cue to leave. "You will enjoy her, my master." Rick walked away, hoping for that touch of extra. He had plans for all that gold he was going to get for her. There were things he still needed to buy.

Rick heard Meredith scream; he was sure his master had rammed his cock into her not-yet-prepared-for-him pussy. Her blood would soon provide the lubrication she would need to ease the pain of being raped by his master. The first of at least several times, he was sure.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"Vucarik, I have the gold you require." Rick dropped his bag on his desk.

"Castle." Vucarik picked up the bag and dumped it before handing him back the bag. It looked right to him though he would count it later and if Castle was cheating him, he would send his enforcer to take the missing gold out of his hide.

Vucarik turned and unlocked a small box set into the wall behind him, pulling out the contents and placing the ring on the desk. "One Ring of Regeneration."

Rick picked it up and looked it over. It was a white gold ring set with a large green sapphire. He wasted no time in slipping it on his finger. He knew just what it would do for him. Though simply putting it on he felt nothing.

"What's the most powerful weapon you have on hand?" Rick had still more gold and was interested in a weapon, if it was the right one.

"Hmm." Vucarik looked him over. He knew Rick was an Incubus and that he had strength. There were other demons that were far more powerful like their master, for example. Still a two handed sword was too much for him.

"A long sword, I would guess. Let me think." He turned his back on Rick and looked at his numerous locked doors. Almost every door had something behind it. "Perhaps this one." He unlocked a door, pulled out the sword that was in a scabbard, and placed it on the desk.

" _Darkmoon_ , originally claimed by the Starym clan. This Elven Moonblade was corrupted by Illitran Starym with the assistance of Moander, god of corruption and decay. The blade is also known as Bladeshee for its mythical ghost's ability to cast the spell _Wail of the Banshee_ _._

Rick plopped another bag filled with gold on his desk. Vucarik dumped it on a different area of his desk. He took a few pieces away and put them back in Rick's bag.

"You are now the proud owner of the Elven Moonblade, _Darkmoon."_ He was happy to take Rick's money. Almost all of it.


	4. Chapter 4

**Love**

 **Chapter 4**

It had been three weeks and Kate had done her best to keep her mind on her work instead of her mystery lover. Right now she was sitting on her sofa with a glass of wine while she did her best to ignore her need for him to show up. She'd never ever considered being addicted to a drug. She knew better than to touch the stuff. Except when arresting the bastards that sold or used it. She had just never considered being addicted to sex. Though maybe it wasn't just the sex, maybe it was his cock. Kate saw herself flexing her fingers trying to keep them busy and not wishing to be able to stroke his cock.

Kate reached out and downed her glass of wine. It wasn't helping with her need, however it had helped her decide on a course of action. She was going to get answers this time. She rinsed her glass, placing it in the sink then striding into her her bedroom. Once there she stripped, threw her clothes in the hamper, and went into the bathroom to wash up.

Back in her bedroom she made sure her window was locked just like the windows in her living room. She had even made sure the front door was locked. Then she had an idea and went searching for some paper and a pair of scissors. With great care she snipped tiny strips of paper and placed them strategically in each window and between her front door and the jamb. They were small and nearly invisible unless you knew where to look for them. Convinced that if any of the windows or the front door were opened the strip of paper would fall, she was certain she would learn where he gained entrance to her apartment and was able to leave again.

Satisfied, she took put her phone on the charger and set it to vibrate only. She was off work tomorrow and not on call so anyone that called her could just leave a message. Then she took her weapon out of the drawer and slid it under her pillow.

After that she got into bed wearing her normal shorts and t-shirt. Somehow her shorts and t-shirt always seemed to disappear. This time she was going to pay attention and learn how she became naked. Satisfied with where her phone was so she could use it to take pictures and her weapon, she settled down. Her intent was to stay wide awake and wait for him. It was just that her need for him to show up wasn't helping much.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

She saw him, or more accurately she saw his massive cock. He was right next to the bed. Kate sat up and placed her feet on the floor. As she did she brought her weapon out from under her pillow and jammed it right up against his stomach. It was time for answers. "Who are you?"

Rick was a little taken aback. No woman in his history had ever confronted him like this. She should still be in dire need of his cock. The complete need to stroke it, lick it, and have it fuck her. Yet he wasn't totally surprised. So far this woman had been completely different from all the others.

Kate pressed her weapon a little harder into his stomach. "Who are you?" she repeated.

Rick decided he needed time. Time for her need for his cock to have its effect on her. With it right in front of her he was betting she couldn't resist for long. "I'm called Richard Castle."

Kate suppressed a smile. She now had a name. Once back at her desk she would use it to dig up all she could on him. "How did you get in here?" She had her strips of paper but maybe he wouldn't notice. She just didn't see how he would be able to put them back into place once he was gone.

She asked another question. "Why are you here?"

"You summoned me." She had begged for a lover just like him. She'd wished for a lover that could do just what he was doing so it wasn't a lie. Though he was very capable of telling very convincing lies.

"I summoned you?" She looked askance at him. That didn't make any sense to her. She hadn't summoned him and just what did he mean by summoned?

Rick decided to see if she was closer to being ready. "Stroke my cock," he commanded. He smiled softly when her other hand reached out and started stroking his cock. He really did like her touch. Only her touch had ever been this nice.

Kate saw her weapon pressed into his stomach and she also saw a woman's hand stroking his cock. Her immediate reaction was jealousy. Some other woman was stroking his cock. This was her cock, not someone else's.

As much as he liked her touch, he also liked her tongue. He reached down to take what he took to be a weapon from her hand. "Lick my cock," he commanded. Rick felt her now weaponless hand start stroking his cock joining her other hand. This was followed by feeling her lick his cock. He placed the weapon on the table next to her bed.

Kate hummed at the taste of his cock. It was still the most spectacular taste she had ever tasted. She gave it one long lick from the base to the tip where she stuck her tongue into the slit that was at the tip. She heard him moan from that. It had her grinning. She could cause him to feel pleasure. She did it again and got the same groan. Then she placed the head in her mouth and swirled her tongue around it before sticking her tongue into the slit. She was rewarded with the taste of his precum.

It was Kate who moaned this time. As much as she loved the taste of his cock, she really loved the taste of his come. So much so that she dedicated herself to getting him to come in her mouth so she could taste more of him. She was stroking his cock with both hands while she worked over the head with her tongue until she heard him groan loudly and felt him spurt into her mouth. She greedily swirled her tongue all around so she could get all the taste and swallowed all of it and felt him spurt two more times. Some of it leaked out of her mouth and started to run down her chin. She quickly used her finger to wipe it up then sucked that finger so she could get all of it.

Rick really liked climaxing into her mouth but there was something he really wanted to do. "You want me to eat your pussy." It wasn't really a command, however it had the result he wanted.

"Yes!" Kate pulled her t-shirt over her head, shimmied out of her shorts, and threw both pieces of clothing somewhere. She stayed right where she was, lying back on the bed and spreading her legs wide.

Rick took his time and looked her pussy over, trying to memorize every crease, every hair. The look of her wet pussy. A quick lick told him that her taste was nothing like any other woman. Both missed hearing each other moan at the feeling.

Kate grabbed handfuls of his hair and directed his tongue to where she wanted it. GOD but he was talented! Then she felt his tongue enter her. She moaned and pressed his face even harder into her core. Just a couple of licks to her clit and she was screaming out her first climax. It was just that he didn't stop. He actually sped up. His tongue was incredibly fast. It just took seconds for her to scream out her second orgasm.

Even though her clit was now very sensitive she immediately missed having his tongue licking her pussy.

"You want me to fuck you." As before it wasn't really a command but it had the same result. Kate got up quickly and was on her hands and knees, looking behind her to see his cock aimed at her entrance. His cock was massive and she so wanted him to bury it deep inside her. It was still easily two feet long if not a little longer and was as big around as her upper arm. She wanted to feel it fill her pussy so completely.

Kate felt his head slip past her lips and enter her. Rick actually moaned at the feeling of her tight pussy. He filled all the other woman equally as full. It was what he did. It was what he was. However the feeling of being in _her_ pussy easily exceeded all the others.

Rick slowly pressed his cock deep into her until every inch of him was buried inside her. Then he started to pull out slowly. He could hear her moaning and whimpering. It was a sound that did strange things to him. He felt different while listening to her make those sounds while he fucked her.

He felt himself climax and filled her with his come. He knew it was possible that she could get pregnant, though no other woman had ever gotten pregnant from him that he knew about. He really didn't want children and didn't want a woman all his own. But of late he was beginning to wonder what a life with a woman that was all his and with children would be like. Sadly living with a family in the Abyss was impossible.

Rick stayed inside her until he softened and then pulled out. He was done and needed to move on. He could hear his name being called by another woman.

"NO… Don't go." Kate spun around and looked at his soft cock. It looked different though she felt the need to reach out and hold it, make it hard again so he could fuck her again.

"I need to go." The woman that was calling him was ready for his master, or so he believed.

Kate looked up at him. For the first time she saw his face. He was handsome. He hadn't shaved in a few days and his stubble actually made him even more handsome, a rugged, bad guy type of handsome. A look that she couldn't resist.

She saw him kneel down to her level and looked her in her eyes. She saw his blue eyes practically glow back at her. He was so incredibly handsome. "Summon me when you want me, when you need me. You now know my name." Rick kissed her and felt her take hold of his head and kiss him back with passion. Her kisses were just like the rest of her. She was truly a totally unique woman.

Kate watched him pull away and saw him walk toward her bedroom door. Just as he reached it she thought she saw him vanish. She missed him instantly.

She was sitting on her bed – and realized she was naked again – when her eyes landed on her phone. It was two and a half hours later. Then she saw her weapon. "DAMN IT!" She had succumbed to him. She had stroked and licked his huge cock. She'd even let him fuck her. Granted she'd loved every moment of it, but she hadn't succeeded in doing what she had wanted. What she had planned.

"Castle! Richard Castle." Kate scrambled for a pen and paper before she forgot his name. Even now her memory of them having sex was fading.

Then she felt her pussy. Her fingers came back white. He had fucked her and climaxed inside her yet again. She was on the pill but one of these times it wasn't going to work.

"MY PAPERS!" Still naked, she hurried to her bedroom window.

Minutes later she was sitting on her sofa still unclothed. All of the papers were in place. She had no idea how he got in and out of her apartment.

Kate pulled her knees tight to her chest and tried to remember everything. The more she thought about it the more convinced she was that she was now addicted to his cock. She really did want to stroke it, lick it, and have it fuck her senseless. "I'm so screwed." What was she going to do now? Besides going into work and learning all she could about one Richard Castle. Maybe she could surprise him where he lived. "MY WEAPON!"

She jumped up and ran to her bedroom. She found it sitting on her nightstand. Picking it up, she tried hard to remember just how it had gotten there.

"Damn he's good!" She was going to have to up her game and come up with a new plan.

"He said I summoned him. Just how did I summon him?" That part still didn't make any sense to her.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Castle arrived and saw her lying on her back in her bed with her legs spread wide. He now knew her well enough to know that what she wanted was to be fucked and likely more than once. Since he'd just left the woman that he had actually enjoyed having sex with, he was happy to just get it over with and move on.

Rick crawled onto her bed and licked his way up one leg. He wanted to make sure she suffered at his hands before he handed her over to his master who would really make her suffer.

"FUCK ME!" She liked it when he ate her pussy but she wanted to be fucked. He was teasing her and that just wasn't acceptable.

Rick blew on her wet pussy and watched her shudder. He leered at her, continued his way up her body, and pointed his cock at her entrance. Then he used his hand to rub his head up and down her pussy lips.

"FUCK ME!" She reached down, took hold of his cock, and pressed it into her pussy. Then she moaned as more and more of his cock made its way deep inside her. She wrapped her legs around him and hooked her ankles to hold him in place. She didn't want him pulling all the way out and then plunging back in. She just wanted him to pull out a few inches and then push back in as fast as he could.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

She was resting on top of him after riding his cock to her third orgasm. "You like my cock?" Rick questioned.

"Yes." She actually loved his cock. Like was far too weak a word to describe how she felt.

Was she ready? "Do you belong to me?"

She answered him without really thinking as she came down from her latest orgasm. "Yes."

"Good, you're coming with me." Rick took hold of her and stood up quickly, causing her to squeal from the sudden movement. Then instantaneously they were both somewhere else.

The first thing she noticed was that the heat was suffocating. It made it hard to breathe and every breath she took felt like it burned all the way down.

Rick remained silent. He hated days like today. The volcanoes that dotted the area were all spewing smoke and heat and it made everything that much more difficult. It also meant that the lower level demons that numbered in the hundreds of thousands would be out making everyone's lives that much more difficult. One on one they weren't any danger, even to him. However they mostly moved in groups or even in waves and only the strongest of the demons could handle that many at the same time.

"What is this place?" It hurt to talk but she wanted answers.

"This is where my master lives; this is the 56th layer of the Abyss. It's your new home." She was going to live out her short life here, of that he was certain.

Rick tightened his hold on her as he took her past the guards and into his master's throne room. Rick got his attention. "Master."

"Castle, it's about time." He'd been without someone to fuck for almost a week. So far only Castle was bringing him human woman with any regularity. Graz'zt got up off his throne and walked toward them, allowing his sword to drip acid all the way. It made the floor sizzle with each drop and sent smoke rising up into the room with each one.

Rick bowed deeply. "Her name is Gina, my master." He had gotten used to what his master typically liked. Graz'zt appeared to have a weakness for blondes who had large natural breasts with a good figure.

Graz'zt ran a finger up each arm and felt her swat his hand away. "What the fuck are you?" Gina had never seen anyone like him.

"You enjoy giving me the spirited ones, Castle. I approve." He usually liked what Castle brought him.

Rick bowed again. "I try to do my best, my master."

"What the hell is going on here?" Gina demanded. What she was seeing and hearing was not to her liking.

Rick let go of her and backed away. "I release her to you, my master."

"Where the hell do you think you're going? You're sure as hell not leaving me here with this, this **thing**!" Gina was ready to give Rick a piece of her mind.

Suddenly she felt a very strong hand wrapped around her throat, choking her. "You belong to me now. You will speak only when spoken to. Do you understand?" Graz'zt squeezed his hand just a bit tighter to reinforce his point.

Gina was **not** intimidated. She raised her knee and drove it into his groin. But it felt like she'd just kneed a wall of concrete and it had actually hurt.

Graz'zt simply grinned and pressed his face into hers. "You are about to learn your place." Graz'zt ripped his pants off, forced Gina to the floor on her hands and knees, and rammed his now hard cock deep into her pussy.

Gina screamed from the pain. Rick's cock had been soft and supple and enjoyable. This person's cock, if he was a person, was anything but.

Rick left silently and waited for his gold to show up. He had a pressing need for it.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Rick gated to the Astral Plane with his purchases. He preferred to think of it as jumping since it was such a short distance.

He was just inside what was a large asteroid field. He couldn't believe his luck when he'd found it years ago. He had spent the last few years repairing it and searching every square inch of it.

He had thrown all the dead Githyanki off of it and left them floating, lost in the Astral Plane. It was plain that they'd gotten themselves into a combat situation that they'd obviously lost. He didn't know to whom, but he had a guess. It was a race that he really didn't want to ever be involved with. They weren't demons but they were dangerous in their own way.

He had found two Githyanki Silver Swords still on the ship and had thrown them over the side to float with the dead bodies as fast as he had found them. He knew that the Githyanki would not allow anyone but a Githyanki to yield one of their precious Silver Swords. He did know that they came in two varieties. The most powerful of the two was the two handed Greatsword variety. To have one only invited trouble.

It had taken him days to get the ship as deep inside the asteroid field as he could. He'd since spent months repairing all of the damage. Getting the necessary wood had been the hardest part. Wood was not to be found inside the Astral Plane, let alone worked wood suitable to repairs. Plus he had needed to find the tools.

Rick dropped his load on the deck and looked up.

She was a real beauty, easily sixty feet long. There was one main mast that actually had a large, live tree growing around it. Its green leaves contrasted beautifully with the dark colored wood that had real eighteen karat gold markings all over it.

All of the sails, of which there were thirteen, were both above and below deck. He had taken all of them down and stored what was left of them below deck. He had brought only eight of them with him. They were large and heavy and bulky. They were a deep red with gold stitching in them that formed basic geometric shapes. He thought that they were prefect for this ship.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

It was hours later and Rick was flat on his back trying to recover his strength. All of the sails he'd brought were in place. They were presently tightly held to each beam. He still had a lot of work to do. A lot of the lines that would deploy the sails had been cut or burned.

He'd spent all of his time up in the rigging and needed to make sure that **HIS** ship was clear of any intruders. Even though he was tired he drew his new sword after standing and began his search.

There were two decks below the main deck, most of which was a cargo hold. The crew housing was in the aft of the ship along with the captain's quarters. He had to admit that the Githyanki knew how to build a ship and this captain had a really nice cabin. It was nice and large.

What intrigued him the most was an observation deck that was high up above the aft of the ship. Save for viewing everything he didn't know what it was for. It did, however, have a large wooden pedestal that had a flat top in the center. Around it were a number of symbols. He didn't yet know what they meant, but he had an idea about that.

He'd found a number of things littered all over the floor, several of which looked like broken bottles. It had him looking at all of the shelves that circled the space just below the windows that circled the room. He had long cleaned up the space and put what he had found on the shelves. He had tried to separate them into areas based on what they looked like.

This room was a mystery that he had yet to solve. So far his dream of escaping his master and living his life on this ship, sailing the endless Astral Plane for the rest of his life was still in place.

He was still working on what to name her.


	5. Chapter 5

**Love**

 **Chapter 5**

 _A gentle reminder, this story is rated "M" for sexual situations as well as violence as indicated in the story tag._

XXX**XXX***(ooo)***xxx***(ooo)

Kate was at her desk the next morning. She'd proven to herself that she couldn't explain how he got in or how he got out. She wasn't yet thinking about how well she felt at the moment.

"Richard Castle," she muttered as she typed in his name and waited. "Come on, come on." It was going the same speed as always it but that wasn't fast enough. "NOTHING!? How can it be nothing?" Her search using the name had come up empty.

Espo spun around to look at her. "Something wrong, Beckett?"

"Mind your work, Espo." Kate changed her screen to a different search engine and typed in the name Richard Castle again and waited. "Nothing. …How is that possible?" she growled as she changed her search parameter yet again. Still it came back negative. "Ryan, have you still got access to the Interpol database?" She was running low on databases to search.

"I think so. What am I looking for?" Ryan was ready to do a search.

"Good." Kate got up and went over to his desk. Ryan sat there ready for her to tell him the name.

"Go get some coffee, Ryan." Kate helped him up out of his chair. "Get Espo to help you." She pushed him away and sat down in his chair so she could type the name.

"What's with her?" Ryan and Espo both stopped at the door to the breakroom and watched her type. They stood there, seeing her pound her fists on Ryan's desk in obvious disgust. Then they watched her get up and head for Captain Montgomery's office.

Ryan dropped back into his desk chair with Espo sitting directly across from him. "Who was she looking for?" Espo asked him.

"She cleared the name. Give me a minute." He knew a way to solve that problem. "Someone named Richard Castle." He shrugged. "Never heard of him."

"How's he involved in our case?" Espo didn't understand. It intrigued him enough to get him to turn to his computer and do a number of searches for this Castle person.

They were both still at it, still trying to find Richard Castle, when Kate stomped back to her desk and sat down. She looked pissed but questioning her would reveal that they were digging into what she was doing.

"I got nothing," Espo whispered across his desk to his partner. "…You?" Ryan could only shake his head. Neither of them had anything on Richard Castle. The question both of them were thinking was _who Richard Castle was and why did it concern Kate?_

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Rick needed yet more gold to buy things for his ship. As much work as he had put into it so far, he still had a lot to do. Some of which was getting supplies and putting them in storage. He'd long ago learned one thing and it had come as a surprise.

Rick was thinking this ship was a Githyanki heavy scout. It wasn't really that heavily armed or armored and with thirteen sails it spoke of speed to him.

However, he'd found a kitchen in the crew living area. It was small and didn't seat that many people but it had a lot of food storage. Dry food storage and surprisingly enough, frozen food storage. There was a sealed insulated room, inside of which he'd found frozen food. And all of it was there to this day.

It was what was keeping the room frozen that had surprised him. It was a tiny elemental that was keeping the entire place below freezing.

Rick had made a deal with him. Since he could Gate or as he called it, Jump, he volunteered to Jump to his realm, collect some of it, and bring it back for him.

At first the tiny being had not believed him. It had been starving for far longer than it thought it had a right to survive. Rick had Jumped and gotten him some anyway. Now they had a deal. He kept the room frozen and Rick would feed him.

Which was what Rick was doing now. He didn't dare stay long since a demon in his realm would be attacked and killed instantly. There were elementals far larger than his little guy was. Some were gigantic and had power that rivaled his master's.

Another problem was what to carry it in so that it didn't freeze Rick's hand off.

Rick dropped what he'd gotten in the room. "Here you go." He watched his little guy pounce on it and at first gorge himself before stopping and eating by picking tiny bits off.

Rick then Jumped home. No sooner than he had arrived he felt one of his women calling his name. His shoulders slumped. He was tired to the bone and really wanted and needed to sleep. But he also needed the gold and this woman was probably ready for his master.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"Finally." She had called him twice now. She really hated herself for wanting him and having sex with him. Since she was married and had a daughter she'd resorted to calling him when she was on the road for her job. Typically she called him to a hotel room. This time was no different.

She needed him. She needed to stroke his cock. To lick it and taste him. To feel his cock deep inside her. The sex with her husband had always been nice and felt satisfying. That was until she had slipped up once and now she was trapped in an addiction. She knew it was an addiction but was finding that she could do nothing about it except to feed it and get it over with.

Rick stepped up to her with his erection and felt her hands on him immediately. Once again he was learning that while her hands were nice enough, they didn't do what the other woman could do. Her touch was so much better.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Rick was actually beginning to grow weary of having sex with all these other woman. He only really wanted sex with just the one. Still he had a job to do. He asked, "You like my cock?"

"Yes." She answered him truthfully because she really did love his cock.

He questioned her again. "You like it when I fuck you?"

"Yes." He was easily the best lover she'd ever had. She really couldn't resist him. She knew she was addicted to his cock but could do nothing about it.

"You belong to me." It wasn't really a question like he had told all the others.

"Yes." She was ready to cry. She was married and really did love her husband and truly loved her daughter. But this man and his cock ruled her. She felt tears starting to course down her cheeks.

"You're coming with me." Rick grabbed hold of her and Gated to his master's residence.

She found the heat to be utterly oppressive. The land surrounding the building looked burnt and the sky was an angry red. The building in front of her was overwhelmingly large and impressive, if not a little old. Okay, make that really old. "Where are we?" Just breathing hurt and talking was painful.

"This is my master's home. Your new home. This is the 56th layer of the Abyss." Rick manhandled her into the building and past all the guards.

"Abyss? You mean Hell?" What in the name of all that was holy was going on here?

"Hell's different. It only has nine levels. The Abyss has 666 layers." Not that information was going to help her any.

Rick bowed deeply while holding the woman tightly. "Master."

"Castle, your timing is excellent. What have you brought me?" Rick was still doing better than any of the others.

"You will enjoy this one, my master. She is strong-willed." She might actually be a challenge for him.

Eyes snapping in anger, she demanded an answer. "Who or what the hell are you?" She had never seen anyone like Graz'zt. He barely looked human to her.

Graz'zt stepped up to her and wound up to deliver the back of his hand to her cheek. She was well-trained, though, and blocked the blow. Even worse she managed to catch his arm and spun her body and his arm with the intent on bending it behind his back and pinning it there. Sadly she wasn't prepared for his strength. It was greater than anything she'd ever encountered. He simply yanked his arm out of her grasp.

"She is well-trained, my master. By something called FBI. Her name is Jordan. I relinquish her to you." Rick bowed and stepped back.

"Relinquish! Like hell!" Jordan snarled. She wasn't really sure how she had gotten there or how she was going to get back. Fortunately her mind was as sharp as ever since she no longer desired Rick's cock.

"I will teach you your place." Graz'zt was starting to like her, even if she wasn't going to last long. Same as all the others. Though he kind of liked the change. He reached out to take hold of her.

But Jordan was ready for him; she flipped him and he landed on the floor with a loud crash. "I belong to no one!" She would submit over her dead body.

"Ooo, I like her, Castle. I will double your payment. You are now MY sex slave." Graz'zt stood slowly and debated what to do next. This one was feisty.

"Sex slave!?" To this thing? Jordan had to think fast. Really fast. "I agree to be your sex partner provided that I can earn my release. To willingly have sex with you and please you. You agree to release me." She needed to get back to her husband and her daughter in one piece.

Rick left them to discuss their contract for sex. His involvement was now over. What happened to her was no longer his concern. His concern was to go home and await his gold.

He was spotted by Jordan as he left, though. "I won't forget this, Castle."

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

It turned out to be a lot of gold. He Gated to a different realm after putting on the clothing that he normally only wore for special occasions. He worried a little that he would stand out since it was very ornate. He was hoping to find something there.

"What do you want?" He was old and he was not happy at being interrupted. He was doing a lot of reading for a research project.

Rick bowed his head to show his respect. "I need to understand the function of a device. I can draw it for you and pay for your time."

Thinking that anything this person wanted would only take a moment he quickly agreed and watched as Rick started drawing. "Enough!" He knew exactly what it was and told Rick the cost. Rick quickly agreed and handed over almost half of the gold he'd brought with him.

"It's Githyanki," the man began. It didn't please Rick since he already knew that. However, the old man held up his hand to silence him. "It's part navigation device. There are a number of symbols all around it. Those are the controls. They control the deployment of the sails or retracting them. They also control the direction you wish to travel. There are also many viewing windows all around, I'm betting." He stopped and looked at Rick who nodded mutely. "There's a symbol at each window. Activate that symbol and the window will show everything in that direction. You can even zoom far out ahead of you or far behind you."

"Thank you. …Anything else?" Rick was paying a lot for this information.

"Just this. The pedestal is not only navigation. It's also a transmitter. Whatever you place on the top will spread to the entire ship." Even he thought it a brilliant idea.

Rick had to think about that. "Can you give an example, make it easier for me to understand?"

The old man nodded. "You can take that ring off your finger and place it there. Instead of repairing your body it will repair the ship. Any item you place there will affect the entire ship. It's only limited by your imagination at what you can place there." He was done speaking; he turned his back on Rick and returned to his research.

Rick just stood there and tried to think about that. "Potion bottles." It explained all the broken potion bottles. His ring worked continuously. A potion only worked the one time. He remembered figures, rings, and even scrolls. But he couldn't read any of it.

"I can't read the symbols." Maybe the old man had something that would solve that for him.

"That's _your_ problem." He dismissed Rick with a wave of his hand and sat down to go back to work. "Try **The Antique Key** down the road." He sent Rick on his way.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Rick's problem was that he didn't know which way down the road. Plus he needed to be careful. If he ran across a religious person they might figure out that he was a demon and he would instantly be in big trouble. He looked around nervously. Just how far down the road was it?

Since this store was in the middle of a street he chose to continue southward since he had approached from the other direction.

He counted it as good luck that it was just a couple of blocks down the road. However, this direction got him a lot closer to what was obviously a temple that was probably filled with pious individuals.

Stepping inside he found the place mostly empty. Though finding the person who owned it wasn't hard. Rick walked around looking things over while he waited. He resisted the urge to try and steal something. This close to that temple he needed to be careful. And he needed to get this over with as quickly as possible.

The owner approached him. "How can I help you?" He looked Rick over and noticed what he was wearing. He assumed he was getting ready to attend some religious function.

"I need to be able to read symbols that I don't understand. Preferably continuously." Being able to read it for a minute and then losing that ability would not be good.

"Do you have an example?" Not every item would translate any language.

"Unfortunately no. Although I can draw one for you." Rick had done his best to try and memorize one of them.

Rick was presented a parchment and a pen and the shopkeeper watched Rick draw. "Githyanki. Very difficult language." His thought about his friend here changed. Anyone that spent time in the Astral Plane obviously had power or a death wish.

"Let me think." He walked away and seemed to be wandering around until he stopped and came back with a small box. "These will translate a great many languages. They are lenses that you wear on your eyeballs. They are meant to be worn permanently." He opened the box and Rick saw small thin crystals.

Then he was told the price. Rick knew how much he had remaining and knew that buying these would bleed him of almost every gold coin that he had on him or anywhere else. It meant he had to continue to serve his master. Though until his ship was ready he was going to have to do that anyway.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate had decided that she needed a new plan. Finding anything on Richard Castle had been impossible. It was as though he didn't exist. Maybe if she could get him to talk he would accidentally give her something that she could use.

Her only problem was her addiction to his cock. Kate had worked out that the longer she went without, the worse it got. So she needed for him to show up shortly after the last time. She also worried that just seeing him naked with his huge cock would cause a weakness. She hated not being in control and with Castle she was definitely not in control.

"I summoned him." What had he meant by that? She had only just learned his name so it wasn't that. But maybe now that she knew his name she could use it to call him.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate looked around. She was in her bedroom. Her weapon was under her pillow again. Her phone was on its charger so all she had to do was press _START_ and it would begin recording a video.

She was dressed in her usual t-shirt and shorts and assumed that she would lose them somewhere along the way. Her specially adjusted sunglasses were in her lap as she sat up in bed, leaning against her headboard.

The lights were on so that her video would show up later. She was actually a little nervous. If this worked she was going to learn something and if it didn't she was still going to learn something. Just that the latter would be bad. She wanted information but she was also actually looking forward to having sex with him again. She hated to admit it but when it came to sex he was unbelievable.

It was time. Kate put on her sunglasses and checked to make sure that she couldn't see a thing. Light filtered in from the sides but unless she actively used her peripheral vision she didn't see anything.

Kate wet her lips. "Richard Castle…I need you."

Rick wasn't expecting to hear from her, but he was happy that she'd used his name to call him. It told him that she really wanted him this time. He was a little taken aback when he arrived. She was dressed in her usual clothes. The lights were on and very bright and she had something covering her eyes. This was new and not what he was expecting.

This nameless woman was proving to be a challenge. What was she up to? Rick stood there and studied her and the room. It didn't look to him like she knew he was there.

Rick raised an eyebrow. If she couldn't see him, then save for her addiction to his cock, she wasn't going to be affected by seeing him and his cock. Though it was possible she might be immediately susceptible to his commands. It was just that he didn't want to use them. He wanted sex with her. She was the best he had ever had so far.

Kate didn't see or hear anything and was starting to worry that it hadn't worked. "Richard Castle?" Did she need to call for him more than once? Maybe it actually took him time to get here even though he gained entrance to her bedroom through locked windows and doors.

Rick slowly stepped up to the side of her bed. "You called?"

Hearing his voice caused Kate to stop breathing. Everything seemed to be trapped in her throat. Even the fact that she was almost sitting on her weapon was little comfort.

"How do you get in my bedroom?" Kate could barely hear her own voice. She'd never been this scared in her life. What happened tonight was likely going to change everything.


	6. Chapter 6

**Love**

 **Chapter 6**

Rick watched her grope for something on her nightstand next to her. He recognized the device as a phone. Since all she did was touch it, he ignored the action.

"Castle?" He was being too silent. She needed for him to talk to her. Then she felt the mattress shift, meaning he had sat down on the edge of the bed. Next she felt his hand work its way up from her lower calf to her upper thigh. It had her biting her tongue since she loved the feel of his touch. She had no idea how he did that, but he was damn good at it.

"Remove your glasses," Rick commanded. He watched her reach up to take them off, then suddenly she yanked her hand away and placed it back in her lap.

"No. Talk to me. Who are you? How do you get in and out of my bedroom?" Kate needed answers. She also noticed that somehow he almost had her removing her blinders. She needed to be careful around him.

"You know my name." He had told her. She'd even used it to call for him.

"I mean your real name." She didn't want to tell him she'd searched for him. Granted she had finally found a few Richard Castles after a lot of work. But none of them could possibly be him.

"I **am** Richard Castle. I didn't lie to you." He used a finger to run it across her exposed leg. He actually like touching her. Her skin was smooth and felt electric to his touch.

Kate had to bite her tongue again to keep from giving away what his touch did to her.

"Why me?" She wasn't anyone special.

"You summoned me…so I came." Originally he'd hoped for another woman for his master. At the moment he was second guessing handing her over to his master. He enjoyed her too much.

Kate played with her fingers to keep them busy. "Where do you live?" She needed clues.

"Home, sometimes. Other times I live on my ship." He needed to keep an eye on it in case someone found it and tried to take it from him.

He had a ship. That was a little helpful. What she needed was its name and where it was berthed.

"I've spent months repairing it. It's my pride and joy." Rick thought about how he felt about it and found that he was conflicted about it. What he thought about his ship was a bit confusing. He more than just liked it, but didn't have a word for what he felt. For his ship or for her.

Kate needed still more. "What's it called and where is it?"

"I haven't named her yet." He'd only just recently started to think about that. Then he had an idea. "Maybe you can help me with that." Rick reached out, took hold of her leg, and ran his hand up her thigh. He was shocked when her hand touched his as she stopped him. She was resisting him. This was interesting. Other women had tried to resist though none of them could like she was now demonstrating.

Suddenly she was up on her knees and was now a lot closer. She reached toward him and slipped her hands on either side of his head. Kate searched his features with her hands. He had a little stubble but less than she remembered him having last time. She traced lines on his face. Ran a finger over his lips and felt him press his tongue just to the edge. Just enough to wet a part of his lips.

She could resist no longer, the urge was just too powerful. She used her hands to allow her to to lean in and kiss him softly.

"Are you always naked? You do have clothes, don't you?" Kate had an idea that might help her learn. It was risky and he might not go for it. Hell, she wasn't sure if she wanted to do it. It might possibly lead to so much more. Yet that possibility also excited her, if this worked.

"I have a very formal outfit that's reserved for special occasions." It was all the clothes he had or needed.

That presented her with a problem. "Stand up for me…please."

Rick was confused. She had called him for sex but she was full of questions and what did standing have to do with anything? But he humored her and stood up and felt her follow him.

She still had those dark glasses over her eyes and soon found her hands running all over his upper body. Rick bit back a hum; her hands felt amazing.

Kate found that he was broad shouldered and taller than she was by a good four to five inches. His neck wasn't slender like hers and his chest was also broad. She smiled as when her hands ran over his abdomen, doing her best to avoid touching his cock. He was well muscled and seemed just a bit ticklish. His arms were next, but since it wasn't cold outside a long sleeve shirt wasn't necessary.

She blindly knelt down to reach his legs. However, this action caused his cock to come into contact with her body. That had both of them moaning softly. Kate moaned because she wanted to rip her glasses off and devour his cock. Rick moaned because she was teasing him and now it was he who really wanted to fuck her.

Still Kate pulled herself together and did her best to judge how long his legs were. There was just one more thing she needed to learn: his foot size. To do that she needed to see his foot in relationship to one of hers. She lifted her glasses just enough to look down after she tried to put her foot next to his. Problem was she caught a glimpse of his cock and that was all it took. She threw her glasses onto the bed, wrapped her hands around his cock, and started stroking it followed by licking it. Soon it was down her throat. She paid no attention to how anything that huge could fit in her mouth let alone down her throat; it didn't stop her from doing it.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate collapsed onto him after climaxing for the fourth time that night. His amazing cock was still deep inside her and she was sure he had climaxed at least twice while inside her. Sex with him was far too enjoyable to worry about getting pregnant. Besides she'd taken about all the precautions she could. A condom was never going to fit over his cock.

She willed her heart to slow down as she slowly came down from her latest climax. It was now or never. She needed information and yet she didn't want to lose him. She took a deep breath, gathered her courage, and said, "I want you to come with me. I want to date you. To go out to eat, to movies, to the park, to the beach. Coney Island, maybe." She hadn't been there since just after her mother's funeral. She was hoping he would tell her something that she could use in her search for him.

She raised her head to look at him. He was incredibly handsome and she loved his eyes. "Will you do that? Date me?" That she might actually fall in love with him hadn't yet entered her mind. This was a fishing expedition for information. "Maybe you can show me your boat." He was obviously proud of it. Was he proud enough of it to show it to her? Give her a tour of it? It sounded like a weakness of his. Perhaps she could use that.

Rick had to think that one over. He was pretty sure he knew what a date was even if he'd never actually been on one. He'd been with enough human woman by now that he wasn't nearly as uneducated as he had been when he first started working for his master.

Still if it meant he could spend more time with her… He liked that idea. "Perhaps when I'm done I'll show you." Just getting there was going to be a shock to her, let alone being there. The Astral Plane was nothing like where she lived now.

Kate took that as a small step closer. "And the date?" He had skipped answering that question and for her that was the big one.

"I'll put on my clothes the next time you summon me," he said.

 _VICTORY!_ She had what she wanted. Kate lay back down on top of him, resting her head on his chest while he was still deep inside her. "I'll get you the clothes. You can come naked again." Now she just needed to figure out where to take him. What would get him to open up and start talking?

Kate felt his hands begin roaming across her back. Then he lifted up a little and pushed his cock even deeper inside her. She hummed in delight; it was time for round five.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate had never gone shopping for a man before. Oh, she'd bought her dad a few things to wear, but never an entire outfit. She'd gone to the largest second hand clothing store she could find and was now wandering through the men's section.

She started with pants and searched the section that listed waist sizes. She'd done her best to convert her arm measurements into something more useful and hoped for the best. Besides, if she got the waist too big, he could just tighten up the belt she was going to buy. It was going to be a casual date so she settled on blue jeans. But like women's jeans they came in different styles. Kate finally selected one and moved on to shirts. She first considered a more formal shirt, just without a tie. However, a short-sleeve pullover helped solve the neck size question. Next came underwear, socks, and a belt. This was followed by selecting a pair of shoes. They needed to be comfortable enough to walk around in, but go with the outfit and be casual looking.

Thinking she had everything, she went to checkout to pay for it all.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Rick was on board his ship where he took his ring off his finger and set it on the pedestal. Then he pulled out his little box and worked at putting the lenses in his eyes. Once in he looked around at everything. "WOW!" Everything that was a symbol was instantly translated into something he could read. He studied the pedestal and saw how he could raise and lower all of the ship's sails. Each individual one. He could adjust his heading. He could actually fly his ship single-handed using this thing. It was gold well spent as far as he was concerned.

Being with her had actually worn him out a bit. Thankfully no other woman was calling his name so he decided to take a nap. He lay down on the wood floor and recover some of his strength before doing more work on the ship.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate laid out his clothes on the bed and looked them over again. They were casual and looked good enough to her. She really hoped to learn something during this date. She had tried the same searches over and over again and had come up with the same answers. Yes, there were a few Richard Castles in the States but none of them were in New York and a few were far too old to be him. She dismissed the ones that lived too far away.

One question she had for him was how he knew she was calling for him and how he got there so quickly. None of it made any sense to her. There had to be a logical reason. She also wanted to know how a cock of his size fit so well inside her.

Kate stripped off her clothes, threw them in the hamper, and headed for the shower. She wanted to smell fresh and clean for him on their first date.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Rick decided on repairing some of the crew's quarters. He had the wood and the tools. However, stepping into the area with a load of wood and the bag of tools, he was stopped dead in his tracks. Dropping the wood and his bag of tools, he stared at the space. Everywhere he looked, everything was repaired and no longer damaged. "All this time and all this work." All he needed to do was put his ring on the pedestal and the ship would be repaired little by little. He could almost feel his back screaming at him for what he'd put it through all this time.

"I'm moving into the captain's cabin." He was only going to go home to collect his gold that his master would pay him for the women he would deliver. He needed to be here to guard his ship.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate was clean and her hair was mostly dry. Right now she was lying on her bed while tugging on the tightest pair of jeans she owned. Once they were on they were going to look like they were painted on. Castle might be damn sexy but two could play this game.

Since it was warm out she chose a colored bra that would show through her almost see through top. She studied herself in the mirror. For a moment she thought about changing to something far less revealing. If he got an erection while they were on their date because of her…well that would be bad.

She worked on her hair a little and then put on more makeup than she usually did. She even used lipstick. Satisfied, she put on her cropped ankle socks and slipped into her tennis shoes. Looking into the mirror again, she was satisfied. Sexy, alluring, but casual if not entirely comfortable. Whatever they ate for lunch she was going to have to pick at her plate. She just didn't have room for much, not in these jeans.

She stood at the foot of her bed. She was ready, or hoped that she was ready. They were either going to go on a date or screw their collective brains out. She was kind of hoping for both. First the date then a night full of sex.

Kate licked her lips and cleared her throat. "Richard Castle…I need you." She worried her lower lip with her teeth while she waited. She had never been this nervous over a date in her life.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Rick heard her call his name. He was glad for her use of his name. He ran to the captain's cabin to put on his only set of clothes. She had talked about something called a date and wanted him to be clothed. He thought he was handsome when he wore them even if wearing clothes was a little strange feeling. He was wondering just what she had in mind.

Kate actually saw him this time as he suddenly appeared. All the other times he had arrived in darkness but this was in daylight, only a couple of hours before noon. She felt her mouth fall open. He was handsome and very sexy naked, but what he was wearing was amazing. He still looked stunning, though she placed a hand over her mouth to keep from laughing at him.

Rick saw the look on her face and felt devastated. He thought he was impressive in his formal clothing. "You don't like it?" He was actually a little hurt.

Kate was relieved that he didn't have an erection. "No…I mean yes. You look amazing, but it's far too formal for our date." She looked him up and down. It was an intricate robe with wide black sleeves filled with gold and blue. The cuffs were red with gold and blue. It was closed with a wide slash at his waist. It was red and blue with hints of gold. There was a sash hanging in front of him that was very detailed. It was black and blue with two stripes of red and gold borders. It had what looked like a blue dragon stitched into it. It was large and took up most of it. Then there was the _thing_ that was on his head. It was tall, black, and had gold sitting in vertical lines. There were even two long chains filled with beads and blue feathers hanging to either side.

She wanted to ask him what was on his head, but she bit her tongue. "I bought you something a bit more suitable for you to wear on our date." She motioned to the clothes laid out on her bed.

Rick looked down at what she motioned to and made a face. They looked…well, they looked terrible. They were plain-looking and disgusting. But her? She looked very different. Her legs were blue and incredibly long, ending with white feet. But it was what she was wearing under her top that had his interest. He looked at the clothes she wanted him to wear and saw that they were almost matching. The short-sleeved garment was a different color and he didn't see what she was wearing under hers, but he wondered if looking similar was what she wanted.

"You change while I go get something to drink." Kate was sure she needed a shot of something to steady her nerves.

"You can stay," Rick offered and began to strip.

"No, if I stay we'll never leave this room." Kate was sure that if she saw his cock they would spend the next several hours having sex. Yes, she wanted to have sex with him very badly, but not until after their date.


	7. Chapter 7

**Love**

 **Chapter 7**

Kate actually thought he looked pretty good in the clothes she'd bought for him. He was still handsome and now he looked casual. "Ready to go?" She took his hand which helped to ease her fears for this date. His touch was not just exciting but now it was soothing.

"Where are we going?" He really meant what were they going to be doing, since this was going to be his first ever date.

"You'll love it. I haven't been there for a few years." Kate wanted it to be a surprise for him.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

She wasn't surprised that he didn't have a pass so she bought both of them a one day pass and took the D train to Coney Island. Rick spent the entire trip looking at everything. This trip was a first for him and he'd never seen anything like it in his life. Kate spent the her time watching him. He looked like he had never done this before. His face was really something to look at. It also told her something. It helped her generate a whole new list of questions for him.

"Coney Island! You'll love it. Maybe we can walk the beach later before we leave." She didn't know why she wanted to share this place with him, being here, walking the beach. All of this reminded her of just after her mother had been killed. Doing either of these things with him was special.

"Coney Island." Rick saw a lot of people and a lot of things he'd never seen before.

Since this was her date Kate didn't even think about asking him to pay for anything. And since this was her idea she chose something tame for their first ride.

However, getting there she saw Rick looking everywhere. At the rides, at the food and at the people. The look on his face was priceless. It also left her with a lot of questions.

"How about B&B Carousel first?" Kate got them into line and paid for their tickets.

Rick watched as she handed over pieces of paper and got coins he had never seen before in return. That and a colorful piece of paper. "What was that?"

"You have to pay to ride. You do know about money, right?" Kate was a little confused. How did he live without money? How could he not know about money?

"We use gold coins. I didn't bring any with me," Rick answered, watching where they were going. It looked simple enough. You rode fake horses, elephants, or other animals that were all attached to poles and went round and round and up and down.

"Gold? Real gold?" Kate couldn't think of any country that used real gold coins.

"Yes, using fake ones, while done, can be very dangerous." Especially if it involved his master. His master was evil in the extreme and enjoyed torturing anyone that crossed him or simply crossed his path.

Kate could understand that but it left her with still more questions.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"We've done something tame, so how about something more exciting?" Kate didn't wait for his response and took them to the Parachute Jump. "You're going to love this." She paid to get them a ticket and got in line. She was glad that they had reopened it. It had had several problems in its history. Guests could find themselves hanging in mid-air or tangled in cables. It had been closed down in 1964.

Rick watched as a worker strapped him into a harness and gave him instructions of what to do.

"Just relax, there's almost no wind so it'll be safe." She knew all of the ride's previous problems had been with the wind coming in off the coast. It caused the chutes to become tangled with the lines of other riders. She wasn't really sure how they solved that problem, she was just happy that it was open.

Rick screamed as he was suddenly dropping in free fall. Then without warning his chute opened and he drifted straight down thanks to the line he was attached to.

Kate screamed and found Rick standing there waiting for her with a big smile on his face. "Like it?" She really wanted him to have fun on this date. For reasons she couldn't explain it was very important to her that he enjoy their date.

Rick looked up. "It was nice. What's next?" He had seen a lot of things for them to do.

"Well since you liked that one, we can try the Cyclone next. It's kind of a landmark around here. Everyone has to have ridden it at least once."

She bought them tickets and got in line. She watched Rick while he watched each and every set of cars going round and round the ride. "What do you think?" Kate still only had eyes for him.

"You don't crash?" He wasn't sure how it didn't. He was happy that he was wearing his ring of regeneration. It meant any injuries from the crash would heal quickly.

She laughed. "No, it doesn't crash."

Kate had hoped for the front car, but they ended up in the next to last car. Still it meant that once they reached the top they wouldn't be held there and then fall.

"Raise your arms high," she told him as she raised her own arms high above her head. "Arms…up." They were about to go over the top. She smiled as Rick finally raised his arms high like hers.

They both screamed as the car dropped on the other side. And they screamed on the entire ride until the car slowed as it reached the station.

Rick was laughing and Kate smiled and laughed with him. "Again?" He'd enjoyed it a lot.

"Sure." She was more than willing and paid for them to ride it again. She got the same results the second time around.

"There are faster and more scary roller coasters, but this one is a classic." Kate had always liked this ride.

"There are faster ones?" Rick didn't see how. The car would surely crash if it did.

"We can try the new one. It's faster and more scary." Kate took him to the other roller coaster.

"The Thunderbolt." Kate pointed to it and had to hurry to catch up to Rick who took off walking.

Rick watched after she bought their tickets. This ride was different looking. The previous ride looked to be made of wood. This one had tubes everywhere. Plus instead of side by side in a car, they side three across in chairs.

Just like last time all there was was a bar in front of him to keep him in place.

"Raise your arms." Kate raised her arms high and watched Rick raise his.

The first thing was a 100 foot vertical drop. There was a zero-g roll and corkscrew turn along 2,233 feet of exhilarating terrain.

Rick had been sure they were all going die at the very first drop. Except for not wanting to give in to the fear, he was tempted to grab hold of the bar in front of him.

"Again?" he asked eagerly before they even stopped.

"Sure." Kate started laughing. Rick seemed to be having fun and despite herself and her need for answers, she was having fun, too.

"This ride is a lot less tame, but it's still fun." She took him to the bumper car ride next. There was also a large arcade area that they might return to later.

Rick didn't understand the controls at first. His watching the others before it was their turn helped some. He found himself being slammed into most of the time until he focused, hunting Kate down and slamming into her.

"Gotcha!" Rick was proud of himself. It had Kate laughing.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"You'll like this one. It's go karts." She bought them both tickets. "We can do the miniature golf next." It was right next door so they didn't have to walk far.

Rick watched the people in front go first. What he saw was this little thing that you sat on while wearing something on your head and going around on a track. "What's the point?" You just went around and around.

"You try and pass the person in front of you and win the race." Kate no longer questioned if he had never done this before. She was pretty sure now that he'd never done any of this before. It still left her with a lot of questions.

"OH!" Rick watched a little more closely. It was just that he didn't see anyone pass anyone.

Like the bumper car there was a pedal for his right foot and a wheel in front of him.

Rick turned too tight at the very first turn and hit the bumpers that lined the course. It allowed the person behind him to get past him. Now Kate was even farther out in front and that did not make him happy.

In the end he never passed anyone and never caught up to Kate.

"Lunch? Want to get something to eat?" Kate was working up a hunger. "Then miniature golf?"

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Rick was looking at what Kate put in front of him after he found them a place to sit and waited for her.

"It's pizza and a soft drink," she told him when she saw the face he was making. "You don't like pizza?" She hadn't thought to ask him. It was just pepperoni and cheese.

Rick had never seen anything that even looked like it. "Let's find out." He picked it up, found it was still warm, and had the end fall down on him.

Kate laughed at him. "Like this." She folded her pizza and took a bite, watching Rick do what she did. "Like it?" He had taken a bite and was chewing. She watched him nod.

Rick thought it was time to ask. "What's your name?"

That had Kate almost choking on her soda as she sucked it though a straw. He didn't know her name? How could he not know her name? He had come to her.

"Kate… Katherine Beckett. Or Detective Beckett." She had an odd look on her face and tilted her head to enforce her bewilderment. "You didn't know my name?" She couldn't believe it.

"You summoned me. I didn't need to know your name." Rick shrugged. He thought it was simple. There was no way he could have known her name.

Kate sat there in silence while she finished her slice of pizza; she sucked on her cola until she got that gurgling sound that it was empty while she watched Rick eat and drink. He was a mystery and she had few answers.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"It's simple. The idea is to use your putter to hit the ball and get it to go into the \hole. The trick is to get it to avoid the obstacles between you and the hole," Kate explained as he held the putter with a look of being totally lost.

"Watch me." She went first so he could see what she did. Her ball just nipped the cup, went all the way to the back, and bounced off the back wall. That bounce actually almost got it to go into the hole anyway.

"Your turn." She stood back to watch.

Rick thought it looked simple enough. Don't hit the ball too hard, make it go straight, and swing straight. He hit the ball and watched it go straight into the hole.

"Beginners luck," Kate teased and watched him smile at her.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate shook her finger at him. "You've played this before. Don't lie." He hadn't just won the game he'd mopped the floor with her.

"I've never seen anything like it before," Rick answered honestly even if he was entirely capable of lying convincingly.

"Riiight!" She wasn't buying it but she let it slide; it was time for the next ride.

"Deno's Wonder Wheel," Kate said and bought them both tickets.

Rick watched as they waited in line. He saw people get inside a basket. The basket was attached to a wheel that went round and round. It was just that the basket fell to the middle or back out depending on where it was on the wheel. Once again he was wondering how the basket didn't come off and people fall to their death.

It was their turn and once again all there was was a bar to hold them in place. It was a little exciting, though, as their basket kept moving like it was going to come off the wheel and kill both of them, only to suddenly stop.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate was walking with him wondering what to ride next. "Thunder?" he asked hopefully. He had liked that ride.

She laughingly said, "I've created a monster."

Rick corrected her. "I'm a demon, not a monster," he said while he kept walking. Stunned, Kate had stopped in her tracks.

"A what?" she questioned softly. She jogged to catch up to him. It also had her looking him over again with this bit of information.

He looked normal to her. But if she added the word demon to his massive cock and his ability to addict her to it… Did that tell her something? What it did tell her was she needed to go to the library or find someone that knew more about demons.

Was it even possible? He'd said that she had summoned him. It had her remembering the book she had read lately about demons being summoned to Earth and making life miserable for humans.

Was he here to make her life miserable if in fact he was a demon, provided that they actually existed. It was just that her sex life was the best it had ever been because of him. Plus she was learning during this date to really like him.

She was enjoying showing him things he had never done before. It did help solidify what he had said, though. What would a demon know about Coney Island?

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Dinner, such as it was, turned out to be a hot dog and French fries. Kate had watched him look at it like he'd never seen anything like it before. He had even nibbled on it at first. He'd even stared at her as she put mustard and ketchup on hers.

Now that the sun was going down they found a spot on the beach for them to sit and wait. It was Friday and there was going to be fireworks. They'd taken off their shoes and Kate had laughed while watching Rick squish sand between his toes. It was like watching a little kid who had seen sand for the first time.

Kate was presently leaning up against Rick and loving the feeling of having him there. So much so that her hand was wandering up his thigh of its own volition. Rick's stopping it was what got her attention.

"Sorry." She blushed and withdrew her hand, learning all over again just how addicted to his cock she truly was. She almost caused him to have an erection and that would have been embarrassing. Worse might have been her reaction to seeing it. They might have given everyone a show.

Moments later Kate snatched her hand away again. She needed the fireworks to hurry up so she could rush them home so he could fuck her brains out.

She knew she was addicted but today had been fun if not a little expensive for her. Plus she had new information that she could do research on for more answers.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate looked down at Rick and saw the look of awe on his face with each boom of a burst of sparkling colored lights in mid-air. She had always loved fireworks, however, watching Rick watch them gave her a new thrill. It was like when she was a little girl and had seen them for the first time.

She had given him that and it made her happy to do it.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate was clinging to Rick on the train ride back home. It was late and she was barely holding it together. She needed him to fuck her and she needed it **now**.

The second the door closed behind her she was all over him. "Castle… I need you and I need you now." She stopped trying to get his clothes off and pulled her top over her head, reaching behind her to unhook her bra. She hummed when his hands left his clothes and were on her breasts. She moaned when he bent down to lick and nibble on her nipple.

"Too many clothes, Castle." Kate didn't want him to stop but she needed his cock. The second she pulled his pants and boxers down, his cock sprang to life; she was stroking it and licking it from base to tip. Moments later she plunged it down her throat. She wanted to taste his come again.

They never made it to the bedroom. Rick took her right there on the floor. "YES! Fuck me, fuck me hard. …Faster, harder." Her pussy needed a pounding.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate had screamed through her fourth orgasm and had lain down next to him. She was sated and happy. He was the best lover she had ever had. She felt him start to get up. "NO, stay…please." She wanted to wake up in the morning with him next to her. It was the first time she had ever wanted a lover to stay and hold her all night long.

Rick debated it for a moment. Staying with her was something he wanted to do. But he also needed to get back to his ship. It was getting closer to being done and losing it now would kill him.

"Fine…but on your bed." He got up this time. She didn't protest as she wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her head into his shoulder. Kate realized that she liked the smell of him as well. At the moment she didn't care if she was addicted to him.

Rick soon found that cuddling with Kate with both of them naked was something he could learn to like…a lot.

He was sure Kate was asleep. His mind was on what he was going to do when he decided that she was ready for his master. Handing her over to him suddenly sounded like the worst thing he could possibly do. But if his master found out, he would make sure he suffered until time itself ended; his master was entirely capable of doing just that. Did he have a choice, though?


	8. Chapter 8

Love

Chapter 8

Kate had awakened the next day to find Castle next to her with her cuddled up close to him. She realized that she could learn to get used to this. It was nice, _so nice_ _._ She also noticed that he was already awake. "I need to go." He didn't really want to but one of his women was calling for him and he thought she was ready for his master.

"I had fun." She'd amazed herself. Being with him out on a date and watching all of his reactions had been interesting. She found that she liked surprising him, liked seeing him laugh and scream in fear.

"Can we go on another one? Date, I mean." She still had plenty of questions. She just needed to think of another date location that would get him to open up.

"Summon me when you're ready," Rick answered and then vanished right before her eyes.

She blinked, trying to make sure she'd seen what she thought she had. One second he was there and the next he was just plain gone. "How does he do that?" Nothing she could think of made any sense.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate had gone into work early and used her computer to do a search. She needed to find someone that was an expert to hopefully answer her questions. She frowned; the man she found was out of the country for two more weeks. She huffed an annoyed breath but made an appointment for when he was back. She'd even used her status as a detective to help her get it.

Dr. David Gallagher was in his 60s and Kate was happy that he was in the New York area. She just needed to wait for him to return.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Rick stepped into view and she literally jumped at him and landed in his arms. She was crying, her tears running down her face. "I love you. I love you!" she told him over and over.

He decided that she was ready for his master. "You love my cock?"

"Yes!" She loved all of him especially his cock.

Rick asked another question. "You love it when I fuck you?"

"Yes, yes." She truly loved it when he made love to her. He was her everything. He was perfect and she never wanted to lose him.

He asked his final question. "You belong to me?"

"Yes." She clung to him to prove it. She was all his. All he had to do was keep making love to her.

"Good, come with me." Rick grabbed hold of her tightly and Jumped to his master's home.

She instantly found the place oppressively hot. So much so that she could barely breathe. Plus the entire area looked terrible. It was a lot of red. Even the sky looked burnt. "Where are we? How did we get here?" She clung to him even tighter, trusting him with her life.

"This is the home of my master. This is the 56th layer of the Abyss. Your new home," Rick informed her as he walked her inside past all of the guards.

HER _WHAT?_

Rick bowed deeply. "Master, I have a young one for you this time." It was his first for a woman this young. He was taking a risk that his master would be interested in one so young.

"Who is he?" She held onto Rick even tighter. He was ugly in the extreme in her view. Tall, as black as a piece of ebony, and ugly.

Actually Graz'zt wasn't sure what to make of this one that Castle had brought him. Still her skin was young and supple. Maybe he would enjoy her for a night. "I accept. I will take her." She would make a good diversion to his troubles tonight.

"I relinquish control of her to you, my master." Rick extracted himself from her arms and took a step back. "Her name is Sara, my master."

"You are my new sex slave, young one. I am going to show you what it means to be fucked." He was starting to think that anyone this young would have a really tight pussy. Just what his cock needed.

"YOUR **WHAT!** " She turned to look at her lover. She suddenly realized that she felt differently about him. "You don't love me." She loved him with all of her soul. How could he not love her back? She was hurt, so very hurt. Tears formed in her eyes. "You used me." She would kill him. Except that Graz'zt took hold of her and using one of his claws, ripped the dress she was wearing off of her leaving her standing there in her bra and panties and shoes.

Sara Manning shrieked in fear. He wasn't going to make love to her, he was going to rape her. "NO, please." She would do anything he wanted just so he didn't rape her.

Graz'zt smiled slyly. The sound of her pleading for her life pleased him greatly. "You will receive your pay shortly, Castle." Graz'zt used another claw to rip her panties off and shoved her to the floor.

"Thank you, my master." Rick turned and left to the sound of her screaming as his master's cock split her insides. He cared little for her. He hadn't even really enjoyed fucking her all that much. She lacked any skill at all. Plus what did she mean that she _loved him?_

Rick took his payment and waited a moment before Jumping to the asteroid field and making his way to his ship. Once there he stowed his gold and placed his ring on the pedestal so that his ship would continue to be repaired.

Unfortunately Rick didn't get to stay long. He heard his name being called again. It was another young woman. He feared that it was too soon for his master. Still he was betting that young woman would only last once. He picked up his ring and putting it back on, Jumped to her.

It felt like déjà vu. She jumped at him the moment she saw him. This one was already naked and waiting for him. "I love you, I love you." She needed to be made love to and feel loved. Her life was just not going the way she had hoped. At least not until he came into her life. And all she had to do to be made love to was to call for him.

Once again Rick wasn't interested in fucking her. There was really only one woman that he really wanted to have sex with. However, she hadn't called for him lately. But he was willing to wait; she would call for him eventually. She didn't have a choice.

Rick began to question her. "You love my cock?"

Her head was buried into his chest and she was clinging to him tightly. "Yes!" She loved all of him but especially his cock and what he could do with it. It made her feel like a grown woman.

He asked the second question. "You want me to fuck you?"

"YES!" She desperately needed to be made love to. To know that she was loved.

Rick needed her answer to the last question. "You belong to me?"

"Yes!" Anything so long as he loved her and made love to her.

"You're coming with me." Rick took a tight hold of her and Jumped.

She instantly found the heat to be oppressive in the extreme. It felt like her throat was burning with each breath. That and this place was dreadful looking. It was terrible. "Where are we? How did we get here?" They'd been in her bedroom just a moment ago. He was going to make love to her.

"This is the home of my master. This is the 56th layer of the Abyss. Your new home." Rick marched her inside the building past all of the guards.

"Where? …MY **WHAT?** " What was he talking about? This was not her home. She most definitely didn't live here and didn't want to be here.

Rick stepped into his master's throne room and saw the servants had just finished cleaning the blood off the floor that he was betting belonged to Sara Manning. He bowed deeply. "My Master." Graz'zt smiled, stood, and approached the two of them. "Another young one, my master. Her pussy is truly tight and small. If you enjoyed Sara you will enjoy this one." Rick was hoping that he had.

She looked at her lover. He'd just mentioned her best friend. What did she have to do with any of this? He was her lover, not Sara's. Even the thought of it made her angry.

"I accept her, Castle. I will enjoy her." He had a new need that he hadn't really thought about. Really young women that he could fuck once and move on to the next one.

"I release her to you, my master." Rick let go of her and stepped back. "Her name is Chloe."

Chloe instantly felt her connection to her lover leave her. She felt hollow, empty. She also felt used. Her anger flared brightly. "I'll kill you," she snarled at Rick. If she only had a weapon she would kill him now.

"This one has fire. I approve. You will receive your pay, Castle." Graz'zt turned his attention to the girl. "You are now my sex slave." Graz'zt was ready and felt his cock straining at his clothes.

"YOUR WHAT?" There was no way she was letting this, this, THING, take her. "Over my dead body!"

She suddenly found herself being forced to the floor and felt his cock shove its way inside her. The pain was excruciating. She screamed in agony. It felt nothing like when her mysterious lover made love to her.

Rick left so he didn't have to watch. Like Sara before her, she wasn't going to last long. Not that he cared. Still he needed to start listening to more woman calling out for a lover. He was running low of women that might serve his master's needs.

Once he made it back to his ship he placed the ring back on the pedestal and went down to his quarters. Once there he fell onto the bed and worried about what he was going to do when Kate was ready for his master. He was so conflicted over her that it was actually starting to hurt. A hurt that he was totally unfamiliar with.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"Hello, Dr. Gallagher." Kate extended her hand to shake his. "Thank you for seeing me."

"What can I do for one of New York's finest?" He couldn't think of a reason that a New York City detective would want to talk to him; he waved for her to have a seat.

She sat in the chair he'd offered her and took a breath to settle her nerves. "Tell me what you know about demons."

"Demons. One of my favorite topics. Please tell me that you're not here to tell me the city's being overrun by them." It was a joke and the fact that the doctor was smiling told Kate he was kidding.

Kate chuckled just a bit and smiled at him. "No, Doctor, nothing like that."

"Demons come in any number of forms. Orcus and Demogorgon are the most well known. They're rulers of their respective realms. The demons live in the Abyss but it in itself is not Hell. That's yet a different realm. Though both realms are filled with completely evil beings.

"The Abyss is made up of 666 layers. Each layer has its own ruler save for the strongest of them that might rule up to two layers.

"I think I have some pictures around here somewhere." The doctor got up to retrieve a book. He stopped on Kate's side of his desk this time and opened it with her standing to join him.

"Here, this is Demogorgon. He has two heads and the body of a werewolf on steroids, if that helps. He has great power and he rules with a ruthless iron hand." The doctor went back to flipping pages. "This is another ruler of one of the layers. Her name is Lolth."

Kate made a face; just the sight of her was disgusting.

"As you can see she has the body of a spider with the upper torso of a woman. It's said that she's a Dark Elf. Meaning she used to be an Elf that was corrupted. She also has great power and it's debated that she may actually have the power to control two layers of the Abyss.

"No ruler of a layer ever leaves their layer. Should another ruler ever learn of it, he would immediately invade in an attempt to increase his or her power. The Abyss is a very dangerous place." The doctor continued flipping pages.

"I recently read a book where demons were summoned to Earth and proceeded to make life miserable for everyone," Kate commented, hoping that might help her.

"Fiction, though based in what is believed to be some fact. All demons need to be summoned for them to reach our realm, which is referred to as The Prime Material Plane." He turned several pages as he searched.

"Ah, this is what I was looking for. On this page you can see the relationship between all of the realms. This is us." His finger landed on the Prime Material Plane. "The Ethereal Plane connects us to the Elemental Planes of Earth, Wind, Fire, and Water. We are also connected to the Astral Plane. Once in this plane you gain access to all of the other planes.

"These are the upper and lower Planes. Think good and evil. The upper Planes are good and the lower Planes are evil. The Abyss is one of the lower Planes. All 666 layers of it. Hell only has 9 layers while all of the other Planes only have the one layer," the doctor explained.

"Demons can't come here of their own free will?" Kate queried.

"No, each one must be summoned. However, once a demon is summoned, that demon can attempt to summon an additional demon to assist it. Summoning a demon is incredibly dangerous. The stronger ones can only be summoned by using a special diagram that you draw on the floor. If you make so much as one tiny mistake the demon will find it and escape. The stronger it is the more demons it can summon to assist it.

"The demon that's summoned can remain here for as long as it pleases, or until it's killed. Even if it's killed it doesn't really die, though. It's only forced to go back to its own Plane where it must remain before it can be summoned again. …If you're brave enough, or reckless enough, to do that." The doctor stopped and waited for her questions.

"You need this diagram to summon one?" She hadn't even attempted to draw anything to summon Castle.

"Oh no, just the more powerful ones. Others can be summoned simply by asking for them. The predominant one is a Succubus." The doctor returned to his book. "This is a Succubus. She can be summoned to serve whoever summons her. Typically she's used to seduce a male to get whatever from him. No matter if she succeeds or not, she usually devours him."

Kate looked her over. She was scantily clad, had large breasts, and long legs. There were tiny horns on her forehead and she had red hair. But it was her massive red wings that got her attention.

"Not every Succubus looks like this one. Like us humans, each looks different and has a different personality. Be warned: each and every one is totally evil. The male may enjoy her for a moment, but he loses his life once she is done with him."

Kate kept looking at her. "Are there male ones?" Did she have a lead? Was Castle truly a demon like he had said without meaning to say it?

"Oh yes. An Incubus." He flipped pages again until he found the precise page.

She looked at an image that looked nothing like Castle. Like the Succubus, he was partially clothed, had red hair, as well as equally large red wings. He had wraps around his lower arms and he was even wearing shoes or boots.

"Do they all look like this?" Kate asked hesitantly.

"Oh no, just like the Succubus or us humans, each one is different. Though unlike us humans, each of them is either incredibly beautiful or handsome. It is said no human can resist them," the doctor explained.

"I mean, they all have these large wings." It was a dead giveaway. There was no way Castle could hide those.

"And the tail, yes," the doctor asserted, staring at Kate. His eyes widened. "You've seen one, haven't you," he asked, thinking he now knew why she was interested.

"He didn't look anything like that." Kate cursed internally. Why had she let that slip?

"You need to be careful, Detective. An Incubus has great power and not just physical power. He has abilities, what we would call magic," he warned.

She rolled her eyes. "Magic? You expect me to believe that?" She knew magic didn't exist.

"A non-believer, I see." The doctor had met countless numbers of people who thought as she did. "We humans used to believe and use magic long, long ago. All those witch trials and burnings weren't just for the fun of it.

"A lot of what we think today has some basis on fact. Even today there are witches that know how to use real magic. Granted they are far and few between and they keep it alive by teaching it to their children."

"Magic. Like what?" Kate was willing to listen even if she didn't believe in it. After all it was what she came here for.

"Well, one would be his or her ability to get you to do something. Think of it as being hypnotized. They can make you do things. Cluck like a chicken. Peck at the floor to eat chicken feed. It is a Command and can be very difficult to resist."

Kate thought it over. "Stroke my cock." She barely whispered it loud enough to hear herself.

"What?" The doctor had missed it.

"NOTHING!" Kate quickly replied. "Anything else?" She wasn't sure what other questions to ask him.

"Just one or two. Each is totally evil. If you ever encounter one, it is because they have a reason. There's something they want and once they get it, your life is forfeit.

"Another is their ability to hide what they actually look like. They can make you and anyone who sees them to see something else. Something far more believable. Something that will be pleasant to the eye. It's basically camouflage. They need to be able to fit in and not be found out before they get what they want.

"You should be very careful, Detective. Demons are very dangerous and pure evil, even to each other. It's why each ruler of a layer is only too willing to attack another layer to gain more power. They care nothing about life except their own." He couldn't think of anything else to say.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Stunned, Kate walked to her car in a haze. And remained that way right up until she realized she couldn't find her car. "Damn it!" She'd gone the wrong direction.

"I'm so screwed." She wasn't sure she believed what the doctor had told her. Demons, magic…neither of those things actually existed. It just wasn't possible. What she needed was more information and the only way to get that was to date Castle. He had given her a lead, if the word _d_ _emon_ had in fact been a lead.

It also had her wondering if he had said the word thinking it would get her off the trail. "Maybe he lied and is playing me." Had she just fallen for it? Either way, another date might get her what she needed.

Besides, sex with him was truly amazing. She wasn't dreaming that part up. But was his cock really as large as she thought it was? Nothing that large could possibly fit in her mouth, down her throat or inside her without splitting her wide open.

"Chameleon." Maybe that had more truth to it than being a demon. After all Castle hadn't done anything mean or evil to her. If anything he was incredibly nice and loving.

"Who or what are you, Castle?" Kate finally found her car and headed back home. She had work tomorrow and was actually hoping for a murder to take her mind off of all this for a while. "And how are you doing this?" He'd vanished right in front of her.


	9. Chapter 9

**Love**

 **Chapter 9**

Kate had spent the last few weeks deeply involved in her cases. It felt as though all of New York had decided to kill each other. It was an exaggeration of course, however, their work load was piling up.

She'd finally agreed to take a day off and recover, though having a day off presented her with a problem. Granted it was a nice problem, it was just one she needed to understand and how to prevent it.

She had the lights on, her phone was set up and already recording yet another movie, and she was naked, sitting on the edge of her bed. "Richard Castle…I need you." Her addiction to having sex with him was making it presence known.

Kate suppressed a smile when he just showed up naked and with an erection as always. She had a lot of questions for him, but her addiction had her reaching out to stroke his amazing cock. Moments later she was licking it and taking it into her mouth. Even after all this time she still loved his taste. She was soon rewarded with the taste of his come. She licked his cock clean to get every last drop. She lay back on her bed and spread her legs wide. "Fuck me." Kate watched as he lined up his cock to her entrance and slowly pressed himself into her. Like all the times before, the feeling of being so full with his huge cock deep inside her was amazing. No man had ever accomplished what Castle was capable of doing. He was the best, hands down.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate had talked him into staying…again. She was curled up next to him and was lazily stroking his hard cock. "How do you do that?"

Rick had enjoyed sex with her as he always did. Even now he was enjoying having her hand stroking his erection slowly and teasingly. "Do what?" Her hand was going to give him another climax if she kept this up. The feeling was so amazing.

"Your cock. It's too big to fit inside me. It should split me open and leave me bleeding badly." Let alone what it should be doing to her internal organs.

"Magic," Rick answered vacantly, his mind on feeling his orgasm slowly build. He needed her not to stop.

"Magic." Kate rolled her eyes. "Magic doesn't exist, so how are you doing it?" She was a down-to-earth kind of girl. Magic was a fantasy. Even if Dr. Gallagher had told her otherwise.

"Magic's everywhere; everywhere you look there's magic. It surrounds you. You just have to look and believe." Rick squeezed his eyes shut and groaned. His groan had Kate looking and smiling. She finally had control. She decided to play with him and took her hand away with great effort. They'd had sex and her addiction had been satisfied so now she could do what she wanted…mostly.

His eyes flew open when she removed her hand. Rick needed release. She couldn't do this to him. He was the one who had control here. "Stroke my cock," he commanded.

Kate actually reached out, but stopped herself. "How do you get into my bedroom without using the windows or the door?"

Rick was amazed at her strength of will. She was actually able to resist him. No woman had ever resisted one of his commands. Kate truly was special. "It's called Gate. It's an ability. It's magic." He tried again. "Stroke my cock!"

She thought about that and was ready to ask him another question when she noticed that she was stroking his cock and Castle was moaning. She'd succumbed to stroking his cock. Still she knew he was close so she actually sped up since she wanted to taste his come again.

Kate was stroking his cock as fast as she could. She heard Castle moan loudly and watched as his first spurt landed all over his chest. See that, she continued to stroke his cock. She wanted to see him spurt again.

Rick was spent and Kate was licking his come off of his chest. "I must leave." He could hear a woman calling for a man to fuck her. Maybe she was suitable for his master.

She looked up at him with a mouth full of his come. She really wanted him to spend the night with her again. She still had a lot of questions. "Will you go on another date with me?" She needed for his guard to be down so he would talk.

"Your clothes again. …Just summon me when you're ready." He was willing to spend time with her. He was wondering what she had in mind this time.

Kate had her answer and he was gone in an instant. She fell onto her bed since his body was no longer under her. She swallowed all of his come. "Gate?" She had another clue, but it didn't make any sense. He kept talking about magic. Real magic not that David Copperfield stuff that was strictly illusion.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Rick immediately liked the look of her. She appeared to be a perfect fit for his master. She was white, had long blonde hair, a nice chest size, and was young enough. Maybe a little short but he would surely overlook that.

"Stroke my cock," he commanded and felt her start stroking his cock with both of her hands. As nice as it was, her hands were nothing compared to Kate's. He still didn't understand why that was. Even as she started to lick his cock on her own without being commanded to, he wished it was Kate who was licking his cock. Kate was special and he really wanted her to summon him back to her.

"You want me to fuck you." Rick made it sound like a command instead of a question.

"Yes." She couldn't believe the size of his cock. It was totally amazing. She didn't even think for a second that it wouldn't fit inside her. She just wanted him and his cock.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Rick had fucked her and she was sleeping so he Jumped to his ship. Once there he took off his ring, set it on the pedestal, and went below deck. He went back to cleaning up all the stuff he'd found. The Githyanki and whoever had attacked them had left a lot behind. He just wasn't sure how much of it was worth anything. Though even if it looked broken he thought maybe it might still be useful.

He picked up all of the armor and took it up to the crew's quarters and stowed it there to go with all of the armor and weapons he had taken off of the dead bodies. Then he went back down for another load. "OH, FUCK!" Rick found what he didn't want to find. "A fucking Githyanki Silver Sword." He needed to use something to move it since he didn't dare touch it. He wrapped it up inside one of the damaged sails and took it above deck. He really thought he had found them all. The blasted thing had to go and it had to be dumped nowhere near here.

 _Silver Sword:_

 _The sword looks like a standard weapon while still in its sheath, but when drawn, it transforms into a column of silvery liquid, altering the weapons balance while it is wielded every second as the blade's shape flows and shimmers._

 _The blades are handed out to only the most powerful of Githyanki or are in some way related to the ruling body that serves their queen._

Rick traveled alone to the very far side of the asteroid field. He wound up, threw it as far as he could, and watched it sail out into the Astral Plane until he lost sight of the damn thing. "Good riddance." He counted himself lucky that a traveling Githyanki or their enemy hadn't felt its presence and come to retrieve it. He was powerful, especially with his new weapon, but even he wasn't strong enough to take a squad of Githyanki or one of their enemies.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate had wracked her brain for a place for their second date. She'd actually enjoyed watching him laughing and screaming. Then an idea hit her. "The Comedy Cellar." The comedians might get him laughing. They served food and even better they served drinks. Kate was sure she could drink him under the table. Maybe alcohol would loosen his tongue and get him talking.

She decided not to wear something quite as revealing. She was banking on the alcohol to loosen his tongue instead of teasing him.

It was already late and she decided she was set. She had briefly considered having a drink to calm her nerves but that might defeat the purpose of getting him drunk. She might need that one drink to defeat him.

"Richard Castle…I need you." Kate waited and was happy it only took a few seconds. As usual he arrived naked and had an enormous erection. The sight of it had her squeezing her eyes closed. The risk of them never leaving her apartment was too great if she didn't. "Time for our date. Your clothes are in the bedroom. Can you handle that yourself?" She meant his erection. If he couldn't she might be willing to give him a quick blow job if that was all it would take.

Rick was torn. He really did want to have sex with her. But he was also interested in another what she called a date. He was curious and chose their date before sex. "I'll get dressed." Besides he could always convince her to have sex after the date was over like last time.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"The Comedy Cellar." Rick read the name and noticed that you actually went down a set of stairs to get below a building.

Kate stopped to read the board. She'd chosen the 7:00 pm showing since that would leave them time for sex after they got back.

MC: William Stephenson

From: Crashing – Dan Naturman

From: Joan Knows Best – Lynne Koplitz

From: Crashing – Keith Robinson

From: Comedy Central – Gary Gutman

From: Comedy Central – Julian McCullough

From: Crashing – Freer Barnes

Kate didn't recognize any of the names. Mostly because she didn't really frequent this place much. But it told her that there would be six comedians tonight with the next show being at 8:45 pm. It wasn't a lot of time to try and get Castle drunk. Maybe she would have to use the bottle of tequila she had at home. Since 7:00 pm was almost 30 minutes away they had time to order food and their first drink.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Since Rick wasn't familiar with the fare offered, Kate ordered their food and something to drink it down with and looked around. They were at their own little table and the place was filling up fast. He wasn't sure how anyone was supposed to move around let alone deliver their food. The tables were really close together. Kate sat across from him and he was almost rubbing shoulders with the guy next to him.

Rick watched as the first guy was introduced. He saw him come out and stand there with this thin metal stick in front of him. Whatever it was, he noticed that it helped him throw his voice.

Over the years he'd learned what electricity was and wondered why his realm hadn't switched to it. It would be so useful.

Rick listened to him but didn't really see anything interesting in anything he said. But he saw that a number of people were laughing, including Kate.

Their drinks showed up while a guy announced the next person. "Drink, Castle, it's good." Kate took a big drink of hers to get him to do the same. She'd even ordered another drink when the server had dropped these two off. If she was going to get alcohol into Castle she needed to keep his glass full.

Rick listened to the next guy and actually smiled several times at what he said. He was at least pleasant enough to listen to. "They're jokes, Castle, you're supposed to laugh." She'd heard him laugh before.

He took another large drink and found that there was another one waiting for him. He had to admit that what Kate was getting them did taste pretty good. He took large swallows to finish the one he had so he could start on the new one.

Kate decided that a new tactic was called for. Yes, he was drinking but it didn't look like he was having any fun. So she started laughing hard with each joke. Maybe if she laughed hard Castle would start to enjoy it all.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate still wasn't sure if he'd had any fun. Getting out was a lot harder than getting in since the place had to be emptied for the next show and everyone left the same way they got in.

The food had been just okay as far as Kate was concerned. People definitely didn't go there for the cuisine. You didn't go there for the drinks, either. She was sure they were watered down and even she barely felt any buzz at all. She had only managed to get three drinks into Castle. Definitely not enough to get him drunk.

It wasn't late yet so maybe a trip to a bar to get REAL drinks might help. Thankfully the city was full of bars and Kate had no trouble finding the first one after walking for a short distance.

She ordered drinks, only this time it was straight tequila. If she was going to get him drunk, this should do it. However, after his first sip her plan fell flat. "It's tasteless." Rick pushed his glass away and refused to touch it again.

"It's smooth," Kate countered as she drank hers down. It was also strong. Rick shook his head.

"How do you get into my room, Castle?" She still had questions. Yes, he'd said that he Gated in, but just what was that? What did he mean by Gate?

"Magic," he replied just as a different drink arrived; Kate had ordered something more fruity for him. He saw the face she was making. "You really don't believe in magic, do you?"

She shook her head. "There are illusionists, but there's no real magic." She just wasn't buying it.

Rick thought about it and what he had stored on his ship. _That and maybe_ _my_ _ring,_ he thought, _except_ _my_ _ring work_ _s_ _more slowly._ "I'll prove it to you. Find a large open space with no people and call for me." He looked around furtively and vanished.

"Castle!" She couldn't believe he did that. "Damn it!" The date had turned out to be mostly a bust. She hadn't gotten him drunk and hadn't learned anything new. Add to that he had just up and disappeared on her in the middle of a bar, no less.

"Magic." Kate huffed out a laugh. There was a time long, long ago she might have actually fallen for there being magic. Then her mother had been murdered and magic died with her.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate couldn't believe she'd done it. She knew just the place. Large, wide open, and no one went there. "This is stupid." She wasn't really sure why she was there in the first place. Had she come because she wanted answers? Had she come because of sex? He'd left before going home and having enough sex that would blow her mind. "Damn it, Beckett, get a hold of yourself." It wasn't because she was beginning to like him and not just his cock and what he could do with it.

"Or his hands, or his lips or his tongue." She groaned. "I'm **so** screwed." She took a deep breath and yelled, "Richard Castle, I need you." The sooner they got this over with the sooner she had more answers. Plus she was going to enjoy proving that real magic didn't exist. She was looking forward to rubbing his nose in it.

Kate saw him suddenly appear like always. She was still trying to figure out how he did that. It certainly wasn't magic. He was even still dressed in the clothes she had bought him.

"Nice place." Rick looked around and thought this place might work. "I brought something for you." He held out a small bottle, placed it in Kate's hand, and gently curled her fingers around it.

"What's this?" It was maybe a little larger than the average tube used when they took blood for testing.

Rick smiled at her since he was about to prove that magic did indeed exist and she was going to learn it. "It's a magic potion; drink it."

Kate made a face. "I'm not drinking this. I don't even know what it is." She held it by two fingers and looked it over. There did appear to be a liquid inside it. It was colorless and the bottle had a cork stopper

"It's magic, drink it," he said. "It's not poison and it won't hurt you." He tried again. "…Drink it."

"What will it do?" If she got sick because she drank this stuff she was so going to hurt him.

"Drink it and find out." Rick wasn't going to give it away, she was going to have to find out for herself.

Kate looked it over and pulled the stopper out. Then she raised it to her nose and took a sniff. It smelled like…like it did after it had just rained. The rain had taken all of the pollutants out of the air and left the air smelling fresh and new. "Not poison and it won't hurt me?" She looked at him and saw him glare at her. "Fine." It was time to prove it to him. She emptied it into her mouth and swooshed it around. It tasted a lot like it smelled. It tasted like fresh rain water. So she swallowed it and handed the empty bottle back to Castle.

"Now what? I don't feel any different." Kate spread her arms wide to show him it didn't work.

Rick smiled at her. "You want to go up there." He pointed at the top of the building a few blocks away.

"Up there? I don't want to go up there." There was no way she was walking that far just so she could climb all those stairs and prove to him that magic didn't exist. "I'd have to flyyyyy." Kate suddenly found she was in the air and flying toward the building Castle had pointed at. She turned around and found herself flying back to him. He just stood there as she flew over his head and kept going.

"NO _WAY!"_ What she was doing was impossible. She reached up to search for the wires that somehow got attached to her. Except she didn't hit anything and missed seeing Rick laughing at her as she flapped her arms and flailed her legs as she flew.

Kate turned around and found herself flying back toward Castle and over his head yet again. This time she flew farther out and got a lot higher. She figured out that where she looked was the direction she would fly. It had her flying all over.

She purposely flew back toward Castle and zoomed over his head again. "This is amazing!" She was loving it. She could go anywhere she wanted in a manner that should be impossible, but she was doing it!

Rick was tempted to unfurl his wings and fly with her. However, doing so would require that he drop the illusion of what he looked like now and he didn't think she was ready for that yet, so he just watched.

Kate just kept flying all over and couldn't help herself. She was smiling widely and enjoying herself immensely. So she flew over Castle again. "How long does it last?" She was learning that she couldn't just stop and hover. She had to keep moving.

Castle answered as she flew past him. "One hour."

"AN HOUR!" She was going to be up here for an hour?! "An hour," she said to herself and decided to take advantage of it. She began flying farther out and a lot higher, smiling all the way.


	10. Chapter 10

**Love**

 **Chapter 10**

 _There was a_ _question. What would happen if Kate summoned Castle in the middle of a church and THREW, not through, Holy Water on him? Answer : He would get wet._

XXXX(((ooo)))

Kate had a case. She was walking through a cemetery in the middle of the night when she shivered. Normally it wouldn't bother her being in a cemetery. It was just that suddenly her mind went to what the doctor had said about demons. Castle didn't _look_ like a demon and the other night when he had given her a potion that had sent her flying had been a real thrill. It only gave her more reason to not believe that Castle was a demon. He was being far too kind and loving to be an evil demon.

She walked up to Lanie and the boys. "Are you kidding me?! Is that a **stake** through his heart?"

"Somebody thought he was a vampire," Espo commented. But Kate knew vampires didn't exist.

"So did he." Lanie opened his mouth to show vampire fangs. "And they're not plastic pop-ins, either."

"Those are real? You're telling me those are real?" Kate had seen a lot while on the force during Halloween, but this was a first even for her.

"That or high end veneers; maybe he really is a vampire," Lanie said after she moved her hand away.

"No ID, no phone. I've got guys sweeping the area," Espo added.

Ryan showed up to add his two cents. "No witnesses, either."

Lanie shared what she thought. "It looks like he struggled. I'm thinking he hit his head on the stone after he stumbled or someone knocked him in the head before he was stabbed."

"Who would go to the trouble of killing someone this way?" Kate couldn't think of a reason to kill a person with a stake through the heart.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate was ready. She was naked and sitting on the edge of the bed. "Richard Castle, I need you." She could feel the need to hold his cock, taste his cock, taste his come, and have the feeling of having him inside her. However, this time it was her idea.

Rick arrived directly in front of her and he had an impressive erection as always. Kate wasted no time in wrapping her fingers around his cock and licking it from the base to the tip. She kept it up until he climaxed in her mouth. She swirled her tongue around her mouth to taste him. "I love your taste," she purred and got up so that she was on her hands and knees on her bed. "Fuck me. Pound my pussy into submission with your cock."

Kate was soon moaning as she watched Castle slowly insert his massive cock inside her. "GOD! Fuck me, babe, fuck me hard and fast." She needed to feel his cock pound her pussy.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

She was resting on Castle, running her hand across his chest while she gave it tiny kisses. She talked about her work with him for the first time. "We found a guy with a stake driven into his heart today."

"A vampire!" Suddenly Rick was scared for a reason he couldn't understand. "Did he bite you?" He got up, forcing Kate off of him, and frantically searched her body for bite marks.

"He didn't bite me, he was already dead." Kate found it sweet that he was concerned for her. It only reinforced her belief that he wasn't a demon. A demon wouldn't be this caring.

Rick stopped searching her body and looked at her. "You're sure?"

"Positive." Kate pushed him back down so she could lay back down on top of him.

"The other night when I went flying – are there other potions and magic?" What else could he make her do? Could he turn her into a super hero? She could think of a couple of female super heroes she wouldn't mind being.

"There's an almost limitless number of potions. And scrolls and magic items that number in the hundreds if not thousands. So you believe in magic now?" He smiled as he looked down at her.

"I'm starting to." Kate couldn't believe it. Real magic. "Can you bring another potion that does something else next time? Maybe I can use it after our date." She wanted to take him for another date soon.

"Coney Island?" Rick asked, smiling.

Kate chuckled. She had a believer in Coney Island and she was responsible for it. "I was thinking something more dark and private. Have some good food and just talk." She needed to learn a whole lot more about him.

Rick wasn't sure she was ready for the truth about him, but he was willing to learn more about her. He might as well start now. "Detective Beckett. What do you do?"

Kate smiled and kissed his chest. "I'm a homicide detective. I hunt down people who have murdered someone. I put them in prison so they can't hurt anyone else."

"Sounds dangerous." Suddenly Rick was trying to think of things he could give her that would help protect her.

"It can be sometimes. But I have a good team. We help each other. Right now we need to find out who killed a guy who thought he was a vampire." Kate ran a finger across his chest.

" _Thought_ he was a vampire? He wasn't a real vampire?" Why would anyone think that they were a vampire but weren't?

She swatted his chest lightly. "Of course not. Vampires aren't real."

"Don't tell the vampires that or they'll suck you dry." Rick was being serious.

"Funny." Kate pinched him for playing with her and got him to squeal a bit from it. That made her grin. It also had her reaching down to take hold of his limp cock. "Ready for another round, lover?" She rubbed the head and watched his cock begin to enlarge.

"Always." Rick would have sex with her all day or all night long if she asked him. He enjoyed having sex with her. Thankfully none of his other women were calling for him.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Rick was standing next to the bed while Kate was sitting on the edge of the mattress. She had a hand on his limp cock and was rubbing it. Even like this she loved the look and feel of his cock.

"Call for me when you need me. For any reason." Rick leaned down to give her a quick kiss. "Are you listening?" He meant for any reason.

"I heard you. Call for you when I need you." Kate lifted up to kiss him back and felt him gone. When she opened her eyes she found him gone. "I forgot to ask how he does that."

Kate flopped onto the bed. He was the best lover she had ever had. He was perfect in a lot of ways. "Chinese, Italian, or steak?" She questioned herself in anticipation of their next date. _Right after we solve this case_ _,_ she thought.

She didn't want to wait until her addiction kicked in. She needed to be clear-headed to ask questions and get some answers. "And don't forget that potion, Castle." She wanted to experience real magic again.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"We're after Morgan Lockerby. We want him alive so no shooting," Kate told the guys after they located a place where he might be staying using the drawings they found in Crow's apartment.

Kate caught sight of a real coffin just sitting there. "You gotta be kidding me! Okay, one…, two…, three!" She heaved the lid open with the guys training their weapons on it. "Empty." She relaxed and willed her heart to settle down. Then out of nowhere suddenly someone jumped on Ryan and a tussle began. During the altercation they broke a piece of glass that allowed sunlight to enter the space.

"Get him off me, get him off." Ryan yelled as they both fell to the ground. Espo yanked him off. "HE BIT ME!" Ryan screamed and clapped a hand over his neck.

However, their suspect rolled into the sun and his skin started to burn. "He really is a vampire!" Espo didn't believe it but suddenly he did. Kate's jaw dropped, causing her mouth to open wide. Suddenly what Castle had said came back to her mind.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Lanie walked back to all three of them. "He's not a vampire."

"But we saw him burn in the sunlight," Espo asserted. Only vampires did that.

She shook her head and explained, "He has porphyria, also known as vampire disease. Its symptoms include sensitivity to sunlight. Blisters, and burns. Other symptoms are paranoia and hallucinations."

Ryan nervously put his hand on the bandage on his neck. "Exactly how contagious is it?"

"You're fine, besides I put enough antibiotics on it to kill a small animal. Now if there's nothing else I've got work to do. I have a body on my slab." Lanie left the three of them.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"How's your vampire?" Rick was intrigued by Kate's latest case.

"He's not a real vampire. His teeth were fakes. We're still trying to figure out who killed him. We've got a suspect but he's mentally unstable. Besides I'm not sure he killed him." Kate went back to looking over the menu.

"Good. Vampires are dangerous and their kiss can do far more than just take your blood." Rick looked at his menu. This entire menu thing was strange. There were so many choices. Did they actually make all these things?

What he said had Kate looking up. Did he really mean that there were real vampires?

"So did you bring another potion for me to try?" Kate's mind wasn't on making a selection. She closed her menu and put it down on the table.

"I did." Rick reached into his pocket and handed it over.

Kate took it and looked it over. The contents had a slight blue tint to it. The bottle itself looked just like the previous one. "What's it do?" It didn't have anything on it that would tell her.

"And ruin the surprise?" He gave her a clue anyway. "We need to find a lot of water so you can go swimming."

"You know I hate surprises." She was more than willing to give them but hated getting them.

"Too bad. We need water, lots and lots of water." He tilted his head. "What are prawns?" That was another problem with this menu. He had no idea what half of this stuff was.

"Seafood. Water, huh?" All the pools she knew about were closed for the season. Though there were hotels that had indoor pools. It presented her with a challenge.

"Seafood?" He looked puzzled. Her answer didn't help him any.

"You don't know what seafood is?" Kate stared at him like she didn't believe him. "You don't know pizza, don't know hot dogs, don't know a lot of things. Just where are you from?" She didn't know what to believe.

"Very far away from here. On the 56th level. Though I've been spending more and more of my time on my ship that's equally far away," Rick revealed.

 _Just what did that mean? Did he possibly mean 56th level? Like 56th out of 666 layers? Shit_ _,_ _was he really a_ _d_ _emon? It was just that he had done nothing to her. She didn't count her addiction to his cock as being that bad_ _of_ _a thing._

"What's it like there?" Kate didn't get an answer because their server showed up. "We'll take another round of drinks, please. And we need more time," she said. He nodded and walked away.

"Castle…, what's it like there?" Being interrupted wasn't going to stop her this time.

Rick debated just how much he could tell her. "You wouldn't like it. It's hot, really hot. I've heard some sections are very cold but I've never been there." He didn't mean his layer, he meant a different layer of the Abyss. His limited knowledge of other layers told him that not all layers were the same.

Kate tried to think of all the areas in the States that were hot all year long. Then she tried adding other countries. It was just that even if they were really hot during the day, they got really cold at night. She couldn't think of any place. "What's it called?" This might help.

Rick decided to lie since telling her the truth would be too much. It's just that actually lying to her was turning out to be far more difficult than he thought it would be, or should be. "Pazunia." Technically it was the name of the first layer of the Abyss, but he doubted she should ever learn that. Still he was damn good at lying so as much as it hurt, he told a convincing one.

"Pazunia?" Kate had never heard of the place. At least it was a name she could use later during one of her searches. "So why is it so hot?" That might help her.

Rick decided on the truth this time and found it was so much easier for him. "Volcanoes."

Kate wasn't sure just what to think of that answer. Yes, the planet had a number of active volcanoes, she just couldn't remember when the last eruption was. Maybe her knowledge of her geography was lacking. But it was one more piece she could use. It did help explain why he was naked all the time. Clothes of any type would be stifling in a high heat.

Rick didn't know what had possessed him to order prawns, except for the fact that he didn't know what they were. However, at the moment he was eating them about as fast as he could. They were amazing.

Kate was sitting there slowly cutting her steak while watching Castle stuff his face. It was amusing and sweet at the same time. He was liking her choice of locations for their date but it was puzzling to her as to why he didn't know anything about prawns.

"Slow down, Castle, you're going to get fat." Or possibly throw up later. Hopefully not during the sex that was soon to come.

FAT!? Was that even a possibility for him? He ate food, yes, everyone did. It was just he couldn't remember ever having food like this. "Can you only get these here?" If not he would go steal all he could carry and take them to his ship for later.

"No, you could get them at a grocery store," she replied then thought about it. "We're going to a grocery store after this, aren't we?" She began grinning at the look on his face and shook her head. He was such a kid some times. It was one of the things she liked about him.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Dinner had been a little expensive. And looking at the cost of buying prawns at the grocery store made Kate cringe. Her checking account was going to take a beating if she kept paying for everything. She groaned. "$15.99 a pound." At these prices her checking account wasn't just going to bleed, it was going to hemorrhage.

"Keep him busy and summon me when you get home." Rick had an idea but he still wanted to have sex with her later.

"What the heck, Castle?" She watched him walk away and waited for the guy behind the counter to help the other lady who had gotten here first.

"Can I help you?" Kate was next and she couldn't believe she was just standing there as she watched Castle go into the back of the store. He wasn't really going to be doing what she thought he was…was he?

"Are these the only prawns you have? Not something less costly?" Kate asked, not really sure she was doing this.

"Smaller shrimp are in the frozen section. Is there anything else?" If she didn't want to pay this amount she could go somewhere else.

Kate knew that she knew how to cook. Maybe instead of going out to eat she could cook at home instead. He did seem to like the prawns. She just needed to make sure she knew how to cook them.

"I'll take two pounds, please." She had no idea how many that would get her. Castle could eat those and she would cook something different for herself. And it mean she had to go grocery shopping with the intent of cooking. Something she very rarely did.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate never saw Castle again in the store and put her prawns in the refrigerator. Right next to her temple of takeout food that had been in there she didn't know how long. After looking inside each container she had no choice but to clean out her fridge. "YUK!" Into the trash the week-old pasta went. "GOOD GRIEF!" She wrinkled her nose. The leftover Moo Goo Gai Pan was next to disappear into the trash can and was soon followed by weeks-old Pad Thai, Tom Yum, and Mongolian Beef. Her fridge held a smorgasbord of moldy leftovers.

"Maybe the entire refrigerator should go in the trash." The interior at least looked clean. She put her bag of prawns inside it with the intent of deep cleaning the interior later before she went grocery shopping.

Kate was sitting on the sofa debating what she should do. Had he really? And what if he had?

"Richard Castle, I need you." He showed up a moment later, still dressed in the clothes she had bought for him. She had at least put them in the washer since last time.

"Castle, did you...?" Kate both wanted and didn't want to know. "They were expensive but not that expensive. Please tell me you didn't."

"Steal them?" Rick questioned. Of course he had stolen them. He'd stolen all they had except for what was out front. The bags were safely stowed in his freezer now. It had also shown him that he needed to get his little guy some more food. He would do that after they had a night full of sex.

"Does it mean that much to you?" He was willing to steal even more. Why did she care so much? Stealing was normal in his world.

"Yes… No… I don't know. Stealing is wrong, Castle. You can't just take what you want. If you did, you can't ever do that again." Kate wasn't sure what she was going to do. She didn't actually see him steal and didn't know if he actually had. "Promise me. Never steal." She meant again but left that word off.

"Castle." He was taking too long to reply.

Rick was conflicted. Stealing was normal for him and his kind. But what Kate thought meant a lot to him. Why it did left him deeply conflicted. He should be getting her ready for his master. That was his job. However, handing her over to his master would kill him. The pain of never seeing her or having sex with her ever again felt very real.

He opened his mouth to answer her and then closed it. Kate could see emotions playing across his face. His poker face had obviously left him. Was she making that much of a difference in his life? His life was obviously not like hers in any way. At least she now had new information to use in her search.

"I promise," Rick said solemnly and for reasons he didn't understand he felt both better and bad at the same time.

Then he undid his pants and pulled down his boxers. "Stroke my cock," he commanded and relished her touch as she began to touch him. He wanted her so very badly. It was a totally new and unique feeling. A feeling that he never wanted to lose.

He now knew he could never hand her over to his master. He just wasn't sure how he was going to keep her.


	11. Chapter 11

**Love**

 **Chapter 11**

Kate had relished finding Castle lying naked next to her come the next morning. He was right where she wanted him to be. She still couldn't believe how good a lover he was; she was thankful that he was _her_ lover.

She went into work early with a smile on her face and turned on her computer; she had new information to use in her search. "Pazunia." She tried different spellings of the word and couldn't find a country with that name. It had her defaulting to using a Google search.

 _Pazunia – Horrors of the Abyss_

There was page after page of information. All of it dealt with it being the first level of the Abyss. Filled with demons along with pools of molten iron that would allow access to lower levels of the Abyss.

 _Avernus. Oinos. Lunia. These are all names for the first_ _L_ _ayers of their respective realities. Much to the sorrow of the rest of Creation, the Abyss is no different in having a single_ _L_ _ayer which allows access to the deeper and more nightmarish terrors that lie beneath. In the case of_ _t_ _he Abyss this first_ _L_ _ayer is known as the Plan_ _e_ _of Infinite Portals, or the Layer of a Thousand Closets. However, in the common tongue it is generally named Pazunia. For the vast majority of those that dare to enter_ _t_ _he Abyss it is the first_ _L_ _ayer they encounter. For those who are particularly foolhardy it is the last_ _L_ _ayer they encounter instead._

Kate was still reading, oblivious to everything around her, when Ryan finally got her attention. "We've got a body. You in?" He waved his Post-it note at her that had the address.

She really wanted to keep reading but was afraid of what she was going to find out. It was looking more and more like Castle had been telling the truth: he was a demon. It had her remembering what the doctor had told her.

 _She needed to be careful or the_ _d_ _emon was going to kill her, or worse._

"What?" Kate looked up from her screen and saw Ryan waving his Post-it note. "Yeah, I'm coming." She turned off her screen but left her computer on so she could pick up where she had left off later.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"She lived two blocks away. Likely on her way home," Kate was told.

"Cause of death is strangulation with a rope," Lanie informed her.

"Young, blonde, strangled with a rope. Sounds familiar." Kate's mind was really still on her computer screen and not on the dead body.

"That was four years ago. No one has heard from him since," Ryan said.

"Care to share with the class?" Kate didn't see the connection.

Ryan looked at her incredulously. "Seriously, Beckett? He murdered several women in just this way. Granted all of them were in their apartments and not in an alley. The triple killer. 3XK." Did that help her memory?

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate was with Lanie in the morgue. Lanie handed over a folder with a picture in it. "Three eighths inch rope with tight winding. Made of green and white nylon fibers. I found the same fibers in her neck." Lanie motioned to the dead body on her table.

"He's back. The triple killer." He had been missing for four years. So why was he back now?

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

The entire homicide floor was up and listening to Captain Montgomery.

"3XK. I was on the task force that was hunting him down. The closest we ever came was a profile from the FBI. White male, aged 25 to 45. He could impersonate anyone. A power company electrician, delivery man, cable installer. He gained entrance after studying his victim for weeks possibly. Then killed them and left them posed in a certain manner. He killed three women in one week. If he keeps to this schedule we're already behind. This is the third day. Get to work people." Roy walked over to Kate. "I need you to take point on this one."

"Yes, sir, right after my doctor's appointment. I've had it scheduled for two weeks. It'll only take me an hour." She really needed this visit. She was scared.

Roy nodded his assent. "Make it quick. There's a woman out there somewhere who doesn't have much time left."

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"So what brings you in, Kate?" Doctor Kathryn Weaver knew her and her aversion to doctors well.

"I'm late." Kate had been having her periods like clockwork. It was just that she was having so much sex of late she was worried that her pill had let her down.

"Your period. Have you used any of the over-the-counter test sticks?" Was she here because she was just afraid or did she have reason to be here?

"No, I haven't. To be honest I'm too big of a coward to use them." She shrugged. "And I don't trust them. What if it came up positive and it was really negative? Or the other way round?" She didn't need the drama in her life.

"Well we haven't done a complete physical in a long time so we're going to do the entire thing." The doctor moved over to a cabinet and pulled out a gown for Kate. "Put this on and I'll be back. In the meantime I need you to pee in this cup. We'll run a pregnancy test for you. We're going to start with that. After that Angel's going to take you to x-ray. It's time for a mammogram. You're of that age that we need to keep watch. I hope you're not in a hurry." The doctor was going to keep her for a while.

Actually Kate **was** in a hurry. She had a murderer on her hands and he was a dangerous serial killer.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Still clad in the hospital gown, Kate was sitting all alone in the exam room. She really didn't have time for this. She was just starting to stand when Doctor Weaver came in carrying a large folder.

"Better sit down, Kate." She knew Kate was going to be destroyed by what she had to say.

Kate sat back down and looked at her. "Your pregnancy test came back negative. Your blood work will be back in a few hours. So it's highly probable that you aren't pregnant." Kate relaxed, but why had she told her to sit down? Then she watched her pull an X-ray out of her folder, turn on the lights, and slide it onto the display panel.

The doctor didn't know how to say it except to just come out with it. Rip the Band-Aid off. "I found a lump in your breast. Both breasts, actually."

" **What!** " That had Kate standing to look at the X-ray herself.

"Do you do self-examination for lumps?" All women should and she couldn't remember if she had ever talked about that with Kate. Kate not doing the self-examination might be on Doctor Weaver's head.

Kate looked at the X-ray and shook her head. "I'm going to want an MRI next. We need to find out if it's already metastasized to other parts of your body. I'm also going to want more blood for testing. That and I want another urine sample. We're going to do different tests this time based on this information.

"Try not to worry. Maybe we haven't caught it too late." But Doctor Weaver feared it was already far too late.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate was walking back into the precinct except she wasn't really paying attention to where she was going. She was on autopilot. She was also very late. Instead of one hour it had taken her just short of six hours including transit to and from.

"Sir," Kate said after knocking on his door.

"Beckett!" Roy was ready to rip her a new one. She'd been gone far too long and some woman out there didn't have the time. However, his lead detective looked totally lost; he'd never seen her that way before. He got up to close his own door and Beckett just stood there. He needed an explanation, needed to know what was happening.

"You're going to need to find someone else, sir." Kate meant not just for this case but someone to take over her job.

"What's going on, Beckett?" Why would he need someone else? Beckett was the best and it was going to take his best to catch this animal.

"I've got cancer. It's terminal." Kate just spat it out and got it over with. She even knew what she was going to do.

Roy froze in place. Of all the things she could've said, that wasn't one of the ones he was thinking of that might save her from him ripping her a new one. "I…" He was at a loss as what to say.

Kate pulled her badge and her weapon off and placed them on his desk. "I'm resigning, sir. I don't have much time so I'm going to spend it doing something else." Saying goodbye to her dad. Spending all her money touring the planet. Going to countries she might never get to see otherwise.

Roy fumbled his way to his chair so he could sit down. "Beckett… Kate." He was lost.

"I'm sorry, sir. …I'm going to go visit my dad." She turned and walked out, leaving a lost and confused Captain Montgomery sitting in his office, his face ashen with shock and sadness.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"Hi, Dad." Kate was feeling a little better about herself, even if she did feel sad and defeated.

"Katie! What are you doing here? Do you have the day off?" He thought she was at work.

"Yeah, I thought we could spend the day together. I know it's short notice, but I was hoping we could hang out." She didn't know what she was going to do if he didn't have the time.

"I've got a client in three hours, but sure. We can meet up again after we're done. It's a little late for lunch. Maybe coffee and a snack. I know you love coffee." Jim was happy to see her and spend time with her.

"That would be great." Kate waited for him to gather what he wanted and followed him to his coffee shop of choice.

"So how have you been, Katie? Caught any new killers?" Jim sat down with his coffee and handed a croissant to his daughter.

She ignored his first question. "A few. I, um…I'm going away, Dad. I'm thinking of starting with Paris and then take a train to somewhere else when I feel like it." There were a lot of cities she wanted to see. Paris was as good a place to start as any.

"Paris! Paris would be nice." He studied her face. "What brought this on?" It didn't sound like her. She'd been a workaholic ever since his wife had been killed. Even more so since she had joined the force and made it to detective.

"I've decided that I've been working too hard and need some time off. I might put everything into storage and rent my place out while I move around. I've taken an extended leave from the precinct." A permanent leave, actually.

"Sounds like a big change. You could do with some time off. You work too hard." Jim liked the sound of it. But just it didn't sound like her. "What brought this on? Is it a case?" Did she get one that hit too close to home for her?

"It's just time. I'm not getting any younger. I should see it before it's too late. Before I'm too old to enjoy it," Kate added quickly to cover her slip up.

"Maybe you'll meet a nice young French guy. Might be just what you need. That or a nice Italian guy," Jim teased.

That had her thinking of Castle. "I may have met someone already." She just wasn't sure. What she had just learned had had her scared. She wasn't scared any longer. What could he do to her if he was a demon?

"Really? When do I get to meet him? Is it serious?" His daughter wouldn't have mentioned him if it wasn't serious.

"His name is Rick and it's pretty serious. I don't know when you'll meet him, though." She wasn't sure what she was going to do about Rick. She did know that her addiction wasn't going to matter much longer regardless.

"What does he think about you going on a trip?" Was she running away from him because it had gotten serious? "Don't run from him, Katie." It was what his daughter always seemed to do.

"I'm not running away from him, Dad, promise" She was pretty sure because of her addiction that she couldn't run away even if she wanted to.

"So what does he think of this?" Jim got back onto topic.

"I haven't told him yet." She hadn't had the privacy needed to summoned him so she could tell him.

"He deserves to know. You can't leave him in the dark." It still sounded to him like his daughter was running away.

"I know and I'll tell him. We'll see each other tonight." Right after she summoned him and after they had a nice long talk when she got all the answers she wanted. Not that it mattered much any longer.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"What do you mean she resigned?" Lanie demanded, speaking to Javi who had only just found out himself.

"That's what Captain Montgomery told us. He's taken over finding 3XK before he kills another girl." Espo hadn't been able to talk to him to find anything out. They were too busy to ask him anything.

That little bit of information left Lanie flustered as she had no choice but to stay in the morgue to keep working on the body she had. They needed for her to find something. Anything that would help them. When what she wanted to do was rush over to Kate's apartment and find out what was going on.

"What happened, Kate?" Lanie turned her attention back to her body but her mind was distracted.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate left her dad without telling him about her having cancer. That it was terminal and the end would be sooner rather than later. She felt a little bad about that, but she would eventually tell him. She just couldn't bring herself to do it now.

Right now it was time for answers. "Richard Castle, I need you."

Kate saw him show up right in front of her. Just like always he was naked and had an erection.

"Where are the clothes?" Rick was expecting to find his clothes and go on another date with her.

"Not tonight." Kate wasn't sure if ever any longer. "Have a seat…, please." She patted the space next to her on the sofa and waited for him to sit down.

Rick saw the way she was presenting herself and heard it in her voice. Something was different. "What?" He wanted to understand.

"I need answers, Castle, and I need the truth." Kate turned to face him. "I need to know."

"What's going on?" It didn't sound like her. Though he did feel her hand starting to stroke his cock.

"I…" She was all set to tell him when she noticed her hand was stroking his cock. Even now she couldn't resist it. She was really going to miss his cock. …She was going to miss **him**. She could actually admit it to herself now.

"I have cancer." Her life was over and she needed to make plans on what to do with what time was left to her.

"Cancer?" He had no knowledge of this word.

Kate looked at him and was a little surprised that he didn't know what she was talking about and yet somehow it all fit with what she knew. "Cancer is…" Her eyes closed briefly while she found the words to explain it to him. "My body is killing itself and it's advanced. I'm dying, Rick." She finally felt the first tears start. It was actually sinking in that she was going to die.

" **WHAT! NO!** "Rick felt his heart split asunder and it caused him intense pain. A pain he was totally unfamiliar with. "You can't die. Please, no." He grabbed her, wrapping his arms around her, and holding her tight. Rick had no idea what it was but his eyes filled with water and it began falling down his face.

Kate hadn't been sure how Castle was going to react. It obviously hit him hard. She also found herself being held tight and could hear him sniffling. She even thought he might be crying. Hearing him crying over her news and holding her tight finally released what she had been holding in. Her tears soon turned into sobbing. She was going to die. But she didn't want to die. She let it finally overtake her and let herself cry.

She let herself melt into him. Since it was all over she could admit it. She was falling in love with him if she hadn't already and she was going to lose him. She was going to lose everything.

Rick didn't know what to do. She couldn't die. She just couldn't. She meant far too much to him now. He had to keep her. He already knew he wasn't handing her over to his master. His master would rape her and kill her.

Her death would kill him. "Please don't die." Rick didn't even recognize his own voice. It was cracked and weak and didn't sound like him.

"I'm sorry, Castle." She really wanted to keep him, but that wasn't possible any longer.

They clung to each other as if that alone would solve everything. Then Rick made a decision. He wasn't sure she was ready yet, but if he had any chance at keeping her he had to risk it. "I have a plan. …I want you to come with me." He didn't have anything back in the Abyss that was his. He only ever went there to get the gold his master sent him.

Kate reached up to wipe away a few tears. Was he talking about her going where he went when he left her? It was time to start asking her questions that she had feared to ask him.

"Castle, are you truly a demon?" Thanks to him getting her to fly and what Doctor Gallagher had told her, it suddenly all fit into place.

"Yes. I'm an Incubus. How did you know?" He feared that it would be such a shock that she wouldn't want anything to do with him.

Kate pulled away and let go of him so she could look at him. What she saw was a look of hurt and anguish. His face was wet with tears. She reached out to brush a few away. It all hit her heart. It also told her that he might love her.

"Research." She swiped at her own tears and wiped her nose. "You seduce women." Meaning her.

He was surprised yet again. How had she learned so much? No other woman had ever learned this much. "Yes, it's my job to find women and give them to my master."

Kate was starting to put it all together. "The Abyss. The 56th level."

Rick was impressed with her tenacity and intellect. "Not you. Never you. I can't give you to him. I care too much to let him rape you and kill you. I can't allow that to happen." His master couldn't have her.

Kate wiped at her tears again and looked at him. "Go to the Abyss with you." She was pretty sure she wouldn't like it there. What the doctor had told her made it sound more like a living hell.

"No, you wouldn't like it there and you wouldn't last ten minutes before a demon killed you or captured you and gave you to my master." Rick made his pitch. "Kate, I want you to come live with me on my ship." He thought he was ready to abandon his master and hide on his ship in the Astral Plane.

"Your ship." Kate thought about it. While it would be a big step for them, she was still going to die soon. "Where is this ship and how big is it?" If it was the size of a dingy he was nuts. Even though she was dying did she want to make such a big step?

"It's located in the Astral Plane and it's about eighty feet long. It's a heavy scout ship that had a crew of about fourteen on it. It has a captain's cabin, crew quarters, kitchen, and dining room and lots of storage. It even has a bathroom." The bathrooms was meant for the crew and one for the captain.

Kate tried to remember what Doctor Gallagher had said about the Astral Plane though that didn't really help a whole lot. His ship sounded large enough. However, it still left a problem.

His plan had a huge hole in it that couldn't be fixed. "I'm still going to die soon, Castle."

"I can fix that," he insisted. He knew it could be done. There was just one or two problems. "It will be difficult and dangerous…for both of us." Mostly for him, though.

Kate didn't dare hope that he could save her, but she couldn't help it. She really didn't want to die. "You're talking about magic, aren't you?" Believing in real magic was still very difficult, even after she'd been shown it.

"You need to believe, you just need to believe. …Please, Kate. I don't want you to die." He stroked her cheek with his hand and cupped her face. "Let me save you. I..." Rick didn't have a word for it. Actually what he was feeling was totally alien to him. He'd never felt like this before in his life over anyone or anything. Though his ship came close.

Kate laid her hand over his and smiled at him. He was an evil demon that seduced women so they could be raped and killed by his master. Yet for her, he was weeping and she could see the hurt and hope in his blue eyes. It sounded like he really did love her; he just couldn't say it. Much like herself.

She couldn't help it. "What's your plan, Castle?" She could at least listen to him.


	12. Chapter 12

**Love**

 **Chapter 12**

"What's your plan, Castle?" Kate couldn't help but have hope that his plan would save her. It was just what was it going to cost her?

Rick thought he might as well get this part over with first. "There's a catch."

"Of course there is." Kate knew it was too easy. "Tell me." She was sorely tempted to place her hands over her ears.

"I can come to this plane because you summon me. I can reach other planes on my own." Rick began.

Kate suddenly understood the problem. "I can't come back because I can't do what you do." She saw him nod.

"There may be a magical way but I don't know anything about it." Or where to find it or what it would cost.

"I can never come back." Never see her friends again or her dad. GOD, what was she going to tell her dad? "So what's going to save me?" He'd said it was dangerous.

"There's a scroll you need to read. Well, two actually, or maybe three. They can only be found in a temple on a different Plane. A dangerous Plane…for me at least." He was a demon and if he was spotted or captured, his life was over.

That had Kate trying to think. Doctor Gallagher had shown her that there were a large number of Planes and the one they were on was just one of them. With this Astral Plane being another one. So why was it dangerous for him? Then she recalled what the doctor had said. "It's an upper Plane."

Rick nodded again. "Very dangerous, but it's where we need to go to get the scrolls for you to read. I also don't know what they'll cost." He could only hope that he had enough gold from all of his women.

"Your gold coins." Kate remembered him talking about them. "How many do you have? And don't tell me how you got them, I don't want to know…I think." Did she want to know how many women he had given to his master? Maybe she would ask him later, but first things first. "If I do this, no more other women, Castle." Kate pointed her finger at him. "I mean it! I'm not sharing you with anyone else. …GOT IT!?" She poked him in the chest.

Actually Rick didn't want another woman. If Kate came with him she was all he really wanted. "Got it."

"Swear to me. Swear to me on… What does a demon swear on?" What was important to a demon? "Swear to me or I'll leave you." She had no idea how she was going to do that, but if it got him to swear…

Rick stopped breathing. She couldn't leave him, not ever. "I swear, Kate, I swear to you there'll be no more woman. There's only you. So you'll come?" Was she going to agree?

"Are there pictures of this ship?" What was she going to be living on or in? He shook his head. "It's eighty feet long." It sounded big enough. "A scout ship?"

That had Rick taking a deep breath since this might scare her away. "The Astral Plane isn't always that safe a place. It's a Plane that creatures pass through to reach other Planes and a few races call it home.

"One is the Githyanki; they're a race that relish combat. They're always at war with two other races that inhabit the Astral Plane and call it home. I found this ship that used to be a Githyanki heavy scout. They got into a battle and lost. I've spent months repairing it. I just need to get the last of the sails up and get more food since there will be two of us." Rick hadn't ever considered there being someone else. Now he couldn't think of Kate not being with him.

"So it's a war ship, with weapons and everything?" Kate watched Castle nod yet again. "What else?" There had to be more.

He tried to explain. "The Astral Plane is basically one big empty nothing. Almost no land to speak of. Literally no water, no night and day. It's different and most everyone you come across will be dangerous. The amount of space is limitless. There is no end."

"Sounds like fun," she commented dryly. Actually Kate wasn't sure it wasn't. It was just that if he saved her she would stay and finish falling in love with him.

"Just one trip for me, but you can come and go so long as I summon you. …You use gold, huh?" Kate began to develop a plan. "How much can you take with you? I'm assuming you can take me so can you take an equal amount, just not me?"

"Yes, you and maybe just a bit more. What are you thinking?" He wanted to take her and take her _now._

"I don't need money so I can convert my money into gold and you can take it. I can go shopping for lots and lots of food and you can take all that with you. Also lots and lots of water. All of my clothes. What else?" Kate needed to create a list.

"Only thrice daily," Rick warned. He couldn't come and go as he pleased.

Kate heard him and tried to think. "Help me pack." She got up and went into her bedroom to get all of her suitcases so she could fill them with clothes and shoes. But she quickly ran out of suitcases and had more clothes and all of her shoes; Rick was already gone on his second trip. "I'm going to need boxes." There was still so much to do.

"This better be a good idea." Kate was changing her entire life. It was just that if it worked, she would be alive. "I said I always wanted someone I could just jump into life with and love." It didn't stop her from being scared, though.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate had a number of full boxes all around her inside her bedroom. She was also naked and sitting on the edge of her bed. Castle only had one more trip today so he needed to stay and make love to her. "Richard Castle, I need you." Kate smiled when he appeared right in front of her. She smiled even wider when he showed up holding two of her now empty suitcases. He was also naked and had an erection.

She wasted no time in reaching out to start stroking his massive cock followed by licking it and then taking it down her throat.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

It was the next morning. Castle was gone and Kate was leaving her apartment. She was showered and dressed and ready for the next step. Today was grocery shopping and looking for containers to put water into. She had forgotten to ask him if it had hot water or was she going to be taking cold showers. Problem was she didn't know how to fix that.

"Richard Castle, I need you." Kate was standing in her living room and watched Castle show up as usual. Naked with a huge erection. She picked up a box and gave it to him. "Food." That was followed by another box. "More food." Then she gave him another so that she couldn't even see his face any longer. "More food. Next will be containers filled with water."

"The ship has a freezer." Rick had no idea just what was in all these boxes.

" **REALLY** **?** " That changed everything for her. "Back to the grocery store I go." She was thinking frozen everything. Beef, chicken, turkey, ham, veggies, everything. "See you later, Castle." She watched him and all those boxes vanish.

Kate still had a lot of questions, like how he really did that, but it could wait.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"Richard Castle, I need you." Kate saw him arrive carrying another pair of her empty suitcases. She smiled at his thoughtfulness. He was nothing like the demon she'd feared. He also was naked and had an erection.

"Frozen food." Kate put a box in his hands. "More frozen food." Still another box. "The last of the frozen food." She put the last box on top of the others. "Water's next, see you later, Castle." She watched him vanish with his load.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate dropped the last container on the floor, dragged her ass over to her sofa, and crashed onto it. She was so blinking tired it wasn't funny. She'd been lugging boxes filled with food around for the last two days and now her living room was filled with empty plastic five gallon containers and she still had to fill all of them with water.

"Please tell me you have a place to pour all of this into, Castle," she muttered. It had better exist and be really big. Then he could bring them back for her to fill them all over again. Just so long as she didn't need to carry more of them up here.

Except now she was hungry from all that work. Thankfully her cell phone was still on her and her favorite Chinese takeout was on her call list. "Ammunition! I need lots of ammunition." She had handed in her service weapon but she still had her backup weapon.

"GOD!" So much left to do and they still had to get those magical scrolls to cure her. "This had better work."

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"Richard Castle, I need you." Kate was really getting used to doing this. He showed up naked and with an erection and she pointed to the suitcases that he'd brought back empty earlier. "Take those next." She watched him pick up all four and vanish. "That takes care of all my tampons and pads and makeup." She was actually running out of clothes to wear now. Her closet was almost empty and so were the drawers in her dresser. Her bathroom was equally almost empty.

She'd already made sure the ship's kitchen had things to cook with so all they needed was the food. She had made a mental note to ask him how they cooked anything. She was betting they didn't have electricity. It also had her wondering how they were going to clean their clothes.

Life was going to be different, that was for sure. Right now Kate was putting her latest load of ammunition for her lone weapon on her kitchen table. She now had thousands of rounds. Getting another weapon was turning out to be more of a pain, though. She was doing it legally unlike all of the gangs that got theirs by other means.

Kate heard a knock on her door. She had talked to her dad just yesterday. Just to say hi and find out how he was doing. Castle didn't knock so it wasn't him. It had her looking through the door's peephole. "Lanie." She sighed and turned to look at her apartment. The water was all gone as was all of the food. So long as she didn't go into her bedroom nothing looked out of place. Except for the large amount of ammunition on her table….

She opened the door. "Hi, Lanie." Kate watched her charge right past her into her living room.

"Don't you _H_ _i_ me, girlfriend. I had to find out from Javi that you resigned. So what's going on? …And are you expecting an army?" Lanie had easily spotted the box after box of ammunition.

Kate closed the door and locked it. "Lanie, I can explain."

"You're damn right you will. So start talking and make it fast before I hurt you." Kate had left her out of it. She thought she was Kate's best friend and her best friend was in the dark and that was **not** acceptable.

"Well I–"

Lanie interrupted her. "Stop blabbering and start explaining." She wanted answers and she wanted them _now._

"I'm trying to explain if you would just–" Lanie wasn't hearing anything useful.

"Kate, please." Lanie was done waiting especially now that she was here.

Kate blurted it out just to get her to shut up. "I have terminal cancer."

"That's nice but why… You have **what**?" Lanie felt her heart fall to the floor.

"Cancer. It started out as breast cancer in both breasts. Then it metastasized to other areas." Kate still felt bad and had great hope that Castle could actually help her.

"Can't they do something?" Lanie was ready to collapse. Her best friend was in deep trouble.

"Radiation treatments and chemotherapy. The success rate is almost nil. It's a lot of cancer, it really is, Lanie." Kate had been shown all of the X-ray results and shown all of the sites.

Lanie sat down before she fell down. "Cancer." Lanie looked up at her and Kate saw tears and it brought on new tears of her own. "So you resigned." That was what got Lanie here, not because her best friend had told her.

Kate sat down next to her. "It's terminal so I decided to visit other countries while I still could. Before it hurt too much. Before it was too late."

Lanie was shocked into silence. "When are you starting this trip?" She was thinking of getting her out to a bar and having the boys join them. They were all friends, close friends.

"In a few days. I've already made some arrangements. Paris is first, even if it will be a little cold."

"Paris would be nice. But what about when it gets bad? You'll be alone." Lanie eyed her friend. "You're not coming home, are you?" Kate wouldn't look at her. "Oh, Kate…"

"It's better this way, Lanie. Don't you see? I don't want anyone to have to watch me die." Kate burst into tears as Lanie enveloped her in a hug.

"What about your dad? It'll break his heart not to be with you. And it'll be so hard for him to have to deal with what's left." A lone tear rolled down Lanie's cheek.

"I know. The only thing that'll be left is my apartment," Kate paused for a moment then continued, "and that's why I'm giving it to you. It's paid for – I bought it with what I inherited when my mom was killed. I can't think of anyone else that I'd rather have it. I set it up that way in my will. You may have to pay some inheritance tax but that would be it. It's yours, Lanie. Please say you'll take it."

Lanie stared at her, open-mouthed in surprise. After hearing about Kate's death sentence she'd hoped for a small memento to remember her best friend by, but this? This was so much more than she thought she deserved. When she finally found her voice she said, "I'd be honored, Kate. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. But are you sure? Really sure?"

Kate smiled through her own tears. "Yes, Lanie, I'm sure. I'll give you the keys as soon as I get everything packed up." She gave her a fierce hug. "Love you, Lanie, so much. Thank you for being my friend."

"I can't say it was always easy but I love you, too, Kate." Lanie's breath hitched. "Can I talk you into meeting me and the guys for drinks before you leave?"

Kate nodded. "Certainly. Just let me know where and when. But make it soon, Lanie. I need to leave soon." She was quiet for a moment then asked, "What about 3XK?" She was still interested in the case. He needed to be caught.

"He killed the third one yesterday. We found her this morning. What no one knows for sure is if he'll stop at three." Lanie hated it. He killed for the thrill of it. Those women didn't have to die and certainly not like that.

"You and the guys may not have time." Kate knew that if she was still on the job she wouldn't leave the precinct until she'd caught him.

"We'll find the time. Are you sure there's nothing that can be done?" She didn't want to lose her best friend.

Kate shook her head. "Time's up." Lanie hugged her and the tears started anew. Kate couldn't stop herself from joining her. If Castle's plan didn't work, she was dead.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Lanie had left with a promise that she wouldn't leave until they'd had a chance to have a drink before she left. Provided that the triple killer let them.

Kate was down in the dumps again thanks to her conversation with Lanie. "Richard Castle, I need you." She didn't need him for sex. What she needed him for was moral support. She needed to be told that everything was going to be okay. She saw him show up, naked and with a monstrous erection. She stepped into him and sniffled back her tears.

Rick wrapped his arms around her. "What happened? What's wrong?"

"I had to tell my best friend that I was going to die from cancer. Then I lied to her about what I was going to do. She thinks I'm going to go on a tour of countries." The entire encounter had been difficult.

"You'll be fine. You have to be." He couldn't afford to lose her. "How much is left?" This was his first trip of the day.

Kate kept hold of him and talked into his chest. "Water, probably all three trips. Do you have somewhere to empty the containers?"

"Yes, it's about a quarter full at the moment." Rick looked around. "This won't fill it. Though I'm not sure that we will need it. There's a device that I don't understand. It might fill the tank without all this." He wasn't sure since he had been transporting all this stuff. Along with continuing to fix things.

Kate chuckled. She'd gone to all the trouble to get these containers and fill them and now he was telling her she didn't have to. "Let me guess, more magic."

"You'll get used to it. Maybe if you start to really believe you'll be able to cast your own magic spells." Rick thought it might be possible. She would truly have to believe, though.

"Soap, shampoo, cleaning supplies. How do we clean our clothes?" Kate was thinking another trip to the grocery store might be in order.

"We have all that. It's Githyanki but it'll work, and magic for the clothes," Rick answered.

"I should have known." Kate chuckled again. Then her face took on a serious mien. "Will this work, Castle?" She really didn't want to die.

"The magic will work. We just have to be able to get it. It'll be dangerous for me and you'll need to get it on your own. I can't help you." It was their major obstacle.

"So what's next?" Rick asked again.

Kate took a deep breath and let go of him. "IF we don't need the water, then those boxes over there." She nodded in their direction. "They contain a number of speed loaders and over 6,200 rounds of ammunition for my back up pistol, it's just a 38 but it should work."

"There are weapons on the ship you can use. They were Githyanki." He didn't understand her weapon.

"I think I'll keep my 38, but thanks." She might add one of his if she liked it or felt the need for it.

"Ammunition, it is." Rick moved to pick up a load of boxes. "I'll look the device over and let you know." He vanished with all of her ammunition.

Those boxes weighed had to weigh close to two hundred pounds in her estimation. He had simply picked them all up and vanished. "I still need to ask him how he does that." She looked at all of the containers that were filled with water and groaned. All that work for nothing.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"Richard Castle, I need you." Kate saw him show up looking like he always did. Naked and with an erection.

Kate picked up a box and gave it to him. "Food." She picked up a second. "More food." Then a third. "Frozen food. You're sure we can cook all this?" She saw him open his mouth to answer her. "Don't tell me, magic."

He grinned and simply vanished. She looked around. All the water was still here and he was down his last trip for the day. "What else do we need? What can you use on a ship?" Kate thought about it for a while then ran out of her apartment. She needed a sporting goods store.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"Richard Castle, I need you." This time Kate was sitting on her bed, naked. She smiled seductively when he showed up naked and with an erection. She reached out to stroke his cock followed by licking it from base to tip before taking it down her throat.

Hours later she was resting on Castle and running a finger over his chest. She had a question that had been bugging her for days. "Castle… How can your cock fit inside me? It's far too big to fit without injuring me badly." If not actually killing her. The tip of his cock should be hitting the bottom of her heart.

"Magic," he replied. That had her chuckling. She should have known but it wasn't really an answer. "It magically fits the woman's vagina, mouth, or throat automatically. It fills her completely no matter how large or how small she is. To make sure she enjoys it and wants more," he explained.

She glanced at him. "The addiction… Will it ever fade or go away?" Was she going to be addicted to his cock for the rest of her life? If she had a life.

He shrugged. "I don't know. Most of the women are ready for my master after just a few visits. You're different. The first."

It made Kate feel special but her mind went to how many women he'd condemned to their deaths. She didn't want to know, but she did. "How many? How many women have you given to your master?" Kate cringed at what she feared would be a large number.

"Too many, far too many." He'd never thought like this before. Not until recently and certainly not until after he had met Kate.

"Who were some of the most recent?" Did she know any of them?

Rick thought about it. "Sara, Chloe, Jordan, Gina, Meredith."

"Are there still woman calling for you?" She didn't want to be jealous. He was hers now, but it was hard.

"All the time, however, my master has other Incubi that can serve him."

Kate didn't like that answer. It meant there would be more women that would fall for a demon and be condemned to death. But she didn't see any way to keep it from happening. Even if somehow they killed his master, his replacement would simply do the same. They would need to kill all of his other Incubi. Though he might just find new ones.

"There are boxes in the living room you can take when you leave in the morning. One is more food, one's camping material that might come in handy, and the other's a case that contains all the gold coins I could afford. After that I think we're done." She couldn't think of anything else they might need, with the possible exception of still more food.

Actually she'd left a few thousand in her account just in case. They might find a way for her to come back here. If Castle's plan worked.


	13. Chapter 13

**Love**

 **Chapter 13**

Rick was gone and the boxes in the living room had gone with him. Kate sighed and started her coffee maker. Her eyes opened wide in shocked realization. " **COFFEE!** "How could she have possibly forgotten her beloved coffee? But she had. She let her machine run, grabbed what she would need, and ran out of her apartment. The closest Starbucks was about to sell out. So long as it didn't cost her more than a couple thousand dollars since it was all she had left, save for a few twenty dollar bills.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate was helping to load all the boxes into the taxi out in front of the Starbucks. She hadn't wiped them out, however, she'd made a big dent in what they had in stock. It did leave her with a problem, though. A lot of what they had were beans, not ground. She had a grinder but it was electric and she was betting there was no electricity onboard Rick's ship so she needed to find a manual grinder. That meant after dropping off all her boxes in her living room next to all the water containers, she'd be back out to look for a manual coffee bean grinder.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

She put her latest purchases down next to the boxes of coffee. Finding a grinder that wasn't electric hadn't turned out to be all that difficult. She'd purchased two just in case. They'd all looked very similar: a long metal case with a grinding wheel at the top. She'd also bought three cases of coffee filters. The grinders had only been twenty dollars each so her checking account hadn't taken that big of a hit. "Richard Castle, I need you." Kate watched him arrive instantly. It was as though he'd been waiting for her to summon him.

"Only the boxes. I remembered something that I couldn't live without. These are coffee beans, coffee bean grinders, and coffee filters. I just need hot water. We can make hot water, right?" She was dead if they couldn't. Well maybe not dead, dead, but she would certainly be suffering if she lived.

Rick simply smiled. "Yes." He started picking up the boxes.

Kate relaxed after that. "Tonight I'm telling all my friends that I'm leaving. Them and my dad." She still hadn't told her dad that she was dying.

"Do you want me to come with you? Just summon me." Rick said through the boxes in his arms.

She smiled and liked him just a bit more. It was sweet of him. It only reinforced her belief that he wasn't an evil demon. At least not when it came to her.

"No, I can handle it. Next time you can take me. I'm interested in seeing this ship of yours." He had mentioned sails and she knew nothing about sailing a ship. All she knew was that it had lots of space and was eighty feet long.

"I'll be waiting. Summon me when you need me." Rick vanished and left her looking at her apartment.

"I'll always need you," she whispered. She was pretty sure she loved him. The very idea had her chuckling softly. She was in love with a demon. Who would have thought?

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate stopped outside of the bar and took a deep breath. Her best friends were in there and she was certain that Lanie had told the guys. She was also certain that she wasn't leaving there without shedding still more tears.

She really wanted to trust that Castle's plan would work. It was just that his plan was based on magic. Real magic. He had proven that it did exist. She even had a potion on her that he had given her that she had yet to use. They had needed a large pool of water first. Her finding out she had advanced cancer had prevented her from using it.

Kate opened the door and went inside. She easily picked them out of the crowd. It was the three of them, plus one. The plus one was lovely with long, curly, blonde hair. Kate walked toward them and saw Lanie get up to greet her first. "How are you doing, Kate?" Lanie let go of her long enough to question her and look her over.

Kate tried to smile but failed. She handed over a set of keys to her apartment to Lanie, keeping one just in case. Inhaling then softly blowing out a breath, she replied, "Mostly pretty good, thanks, Lanie." Lanie sat down and Kate sat next to her.

Kevin introduced the pretty blonde. "This is my girlfriend, Jenny. Jenny, this is our boss, Kate Beckett."

 _Girlfriend. That was new,_ she thought. She was happy for Kevin, though. Kate reached out a hand. "Nice to meet you and I'm not their boss any longer."

Javi piped up, "You'll always be our boss."

Jenny shook her hand. "It's nice to meet you. Kevin's told me a lot about you."

"It's okay guys, you can talk about it. It's been long enough that it's sunk in." Kate didn't want to sit there with nothing to talk about when she was sure they all wanted to know everything.

Jenny immediately broke the ice. "I can't imagine being told what you were told. Did they say how long? I'm guessing it's too late for radiation and chemotherapy."

"It is," Kate replied. "And I have about three months, maybe less. Before that the pain will start to get intense."

"I still can't believe it. After all this time, it's not some perp, but a medical issue." Javi shook his head and took a drink of his beer, a big one. He was losing a close friend.

"Did they tell you where?" Jenny was full of questions. She was going to take what Kate told her and visit her doctor, first thing.

"Both breasts were first, I'm told. Then it metastasized to my pancreas, stomach, and other places." Kate still couldn't believe it. It seemed like it was everywhere and yet she didn't feel all that bad.

Lanie knew the symptoms right off. "That helps explain why you don't eat."

"I eat," Kate retorted. Even if Lanie was right. She hadn't really eaten all that much today. She just wasn't hungry. Even with all that food she'd bought, she hadn't eaten any of it. Right about then the waitress showed up to take her order. "Something strong. Guinness Stout," Kate told her. She returned with the bottle in just moments.

"So what are your plans?" Jenny was doing most of the talking. The others were still taking it hard and found it difficult to talk about.

Kate stuck with her original plan. Besides they would never believe her if she told them about Castle. "Paris is first. Spend a few days, buy a train pass, and go where I want to go. Maybe Hungary, Berlin, Vienna, then into Italy before flying out. I haven't really thought much beyond that. Maybe Turkey, definitely Kiev again. I liked it there. Eventually a beach somewhere warm. I, ah, haven't worked out where I want to be when…" Her voice trailed off. When it was time to die.

"Kate!" Jenny reached across for her hands just as Lanie wrapped an arm around her.

"I won't be able to see it all, but I'll see what I can. What else is there?" Nothing except to pray that Castle was telling the truth. The possibility that he was using her was something she didn't want to think about.

Kate drank half of her beer in one big swallow and put it down. "How goes the case?" Had they caught the asshole?

"He stopped at three and disappeared again. We've got nothin'. Even the FBI came in again. They were missing one of their own, but they sent a team," Kevin said.

"They took over the entire floor." Javi still didn't like them there.

Kevin rolled his eyes. "It was just one room, Javi."

"One room too many." Javi finished his beer and called for another.

"Captain Montgomery's beside himself. He was on the last task force and didn't catch him. He was involved in this one and still didn't catch him," Kevin explained.

"Three lovely blonde women. Kevin's been practically living in my apartment. He won't let me go anywhere alone and calls me constantly," Jenny complained.

"And until he's caught I still will. You're just what he's looking for," Kevin insisted. Jenny found it endearing that he cared so much. She just didn't want to be smothered by him.

Kate wanted to ask questions and get involved, but knew she shouldn't. She had made her choice for good or ill. It was only then that it hit her – she was never going to solve her mother's murder.

"What's wrong, Kate?" Lanie had been watching her and saw that look.

Kate was all set to say, _"It's nothing,"_ but that was what she always said and she was never going to see them again, unless something changed. "I was just thinking that I'll never solve my mother's case. The bastard's going to get away with it." She'd made a life change because of her mother's murder; now she was making another because she was going to die.

"Oh, Kate." Lanie hugged her a little tighter.

"Not if we have anything to say about it!" Javi wasn't letting her down, not now, not ever.

Kevin added his support. "We'll keep looking, Beckett. Count on it."

"Thanks, guys. I wish you luck." Kate felt tears starting, this time for a different reason.

Lanie changed the subject. "What did your dad say?"

"I haven't told him yet. He knows I'm going away on a trip, just not why. He's next tomorrow." Kate was sure it was going to hurt. Hurt both of them.

"We'll watch him, Beckett," Javi promised. He meant watch him to make sure he didn't start drinking again.

"Thanks, Javi." She glanced around the table, her gaze touching each of them. "You've all been such good friends. I'm going to miss you." Even if she did survive this she was going to miss them.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"Hi, Dad." Kate was dreading this meeting. But she was happy to see him.

"Katie! Come in, come in. What brings you by?" He'd seen her just last week, he thought. Maybe he was working too hard and was losing track of time.

"We need to talk. …I need to talk." Kate amended her statement and started wandering around the room. She was unsure how she was going to say this.

What Jim saw was a nervous daughter. She obviously had something important to say and he started to worry that it was something bad.

"Coffee? I'm not sure I have the good stuff, but it's enough for me." His daughter drank something he wasn't sure could be called coffee.

"No thanks, I've had more than enough. …You should sit down." Kate wasn't just wandering around the room, she was wringing her hands.

Jim had noticed all of it and being told to sit had him really worried now. Still he sat down. "What's going on, Katie? Have you changed your mind about your trip?" It was all he had to go on. However, she looked far too nervous for it to be that.

Kate decided on the rip-it-off technique. "I have cancer, Dad. It's terminal."

Jim sat there in stunned silence. He'd heard her but was too shocked to say anything. It was a word he didn't want to ever hear from her. She was his baby girl; she was too young to have cancer.

"Say something, please," she begged. He was too quiet and it was getting to her.

Jim swallowed hard. "Cancer. Where and how long have you known?"

She stared at the floor unable to meet his eyes. "It started in both breasts. Then it metastasized to my pancreas, my stomach, and other areas. As for how long, I've known for about a week, I guess."

Jim was still struggling with the news. A week told him that she'd known the last time they'd talked. He wasn't angry about it. It was just a lot to accept. "It's why you decided to leave work and go on a trip. How…" His voice broke as he fought his tears. "How long?" It was a question that had his tears starting.

"About three months, more or less," she said and waited.

He felt his chest tighten. His daughter was going to die somewhere around her birthday. The timing couldn't have been any worse. "What about radiation and chemo?" There had to be something.

She shook her head. "Three months of radiation and chemo might extend the time to eight months. Three months filled with pain from the radiation treatments and chemo." She started shaking her head again. In her mind enduring that wasn't worth the extra time. If maybe they could have said three years or longer she might have made a different decision. But they hadn't. Three months of pain was only buying her five months. It wasn't enough.

"It's not enough, Dad. Not an option. …I'm sorry." She was sorry he didn't like her choice.

"Cancer…three months." Jim couldn't think of anything else to do or say. He knew his daughter was headstrong, opinionated, and stubborn. She had made her choice and no one was changing it for her.

Jim got up and moved in to hug her. "Just come back before it's too late, Katie." Jim felt his tears starting this time. Kate could hear him crying and it had her crying yet again.

"I'll try, Dad, I'll really try." That included if Castle's plan worked and they found a way.

"Say hi to your mother for me if you see her." Jim let his tears fall. That was too much for Kate; she broke down into body-shaking sobs. If she did die, would she get to see her mom?

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"I expect post cards from where you go. Tell me where you are and how you're doing. Call if you get a chance. Reverse the charges, I'll pay anything," Jim said at the door.

"I'll do what I can." Kate hugged him again. "The guys have promised to check in from time to time. You won't be alone. …Promise me you won't start drinking. Mom wouldn't have liked it then and I won't like it either."

"I've learned my lesson, Katie, I've learned my lesson. Take care and have fun." Jim did something he usually didn't and that was to kiss her cheek.

"I'll see you later, Dad. Please be safe." Kate kissed him and walked away.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate had some odds and ends in a small carry-on bag. She was wearing the only clothes she had left in the apartment.

She walked through the apartment one last time and looked it over. She was probably never going to see it again. The containers of water were still in place. Castle had told her that there was a way to keep the tank full of water forever. "Magic, I'll bet." Kate had shaken her head. She'd a lot to learn.

"Now or never." Kate took a deep breath. "Richard Castle, I need you." As always he just showed up right in front of her and looked like he always did. It was time to ask. "How do you do that?"

"Magic. It's something a number of demons can do. It's called a Gate spell. Nearly instantaneous travel. You won't feel a thing," Rick said.

Kate didn't believe him for a moment. "That's what my doctor says. She always lies."

"I'm a demon not a doctor," he teased and smiled widely. "Ready?"

"NOOO!" Rick hadn't waited and had Jumped them into the Astral Plane just outside of the asteroid field his ship was hiding in.

"AUGHH!" Kate grabbed hold of him and began kicking her legs. There was no floor to stand on. Except for a lot of rocks close by there was a whole lot of nothing.

"You're fine, relax," Rick said.

"THERE'S NO FLOOR!" Kate was still kicking her legs but started to slow down when she worked out that they weren't falling. In fact they weren't moving at all.

"Where are we? Is this the Astral Plane?" He'd said it was full of a whole lot of nothing and except for a bunch of rocks there wasn't much of anything.

"This is the Astral Plane. It doesn't work like your Plane. There really isn't an up and down. Actually you don't walk anywhere. You can walk, but walking isn't what has you moving. Your mind is what moves you. There also isn't any gravity as you know it."

She really had to experience it to believe it. That had her looking all over, including at her clothes, and reaching for her hair. "But if there's no gravity my hair should be floating around like I was out in space and I'm breathing." It was totally weird.

"Gravity is in your mind. This way." Rick took her hand and started jogging, at least that was what it looked like to Kate. She jogged to keep up. Rick had yet to show her what he really looked like so instead of flying he ran.

They dodged rocks. Big rocks and little rocks. A whole lot of rocks. Some were close together while others were a lot farther apart.

"It's 3,720 to 1 to successfully navigate an asteroid field," Kate murmured to herself.

"What?" Rick hadn't caught much of it.

"Nothing, just something from a _Star Wars_ movie. Never mind." Kate kept watching as they moved.

Then she caught sight of something which vanished behind a large rock. "Was that your ship?" She yanked on Castle to get him to go a different direction. One she thought might give her a view of it.

Rick pulled back and stayed on course. "We're almost there."

Then suddenly she was right on top of it. It was indeed at least eighty feet long. It had masts sticking out all over the place. It was a deep red and had a lot of golden accents. It was beautiful. There was a bow and a stern that looked a lot like one of the old English ships of the line. "Castle, are there masts coming out the bottom?" It had a keel but it also had masts sticking out the bottom.

"Yes, thirteen sails in all. She should be very fast." Since he had only ever pushed it around and never actually sailed it anywhere, he didn't really know how fast.

"Is that a _tree_ in the middle?" It had a large trunk and a large green canopy right in the middle on the top side. It was a totally unique-looking ship. It was nothing like she'd pictured. Well, she **had** pictured sails, just not ones on the bottom of the ship. Rick took her down onto the deck where they landed not far from the tree. It was only then that he let go of her hand. That allowed Kate to walk over to the tree. Actually walk on the deck. She ran her hand over the trunk. "It's a real tree," she said in amazement. It was hard to believe that there was a big green tree growing on a ship.

"Come on, I'll show you the captain's cabin then give you a tour. It's where all of your clothes are." And what few clothes he had.

Kate followed him to the back of the ship where they walked through a door and into a hallway. She saw stairs leading up on either side of the door.

"Bathrooms on either side. This is the captain's cabin." Rick stopped at the door on the end to build up suspense then opened it and let her go first.

"OH-MY-GOD!" Kate felt her mouth fall open as her eyes opened wide. Rick preened. He was quite proud of all the work he had put in. The room was easily thirty feet deep, maybe fifteen feet wide, and fifteen feet tall not including the clerestories that added another few feet.

Kate saw shiny redwood floors. Darker wood walls. A wood ceiling with exposed wood beams. It looked like it had two clerestories that were each filled with windows. Way in the back was a wall of windows.

There was a huge bed of dark wood that had lovely antique red and white silk bedding. There was also a massive curved beam from one side to the other about half way down. It and the space between the windows had what looked like gold accents. Along with six chandeliers that were presently giving off light without flame or electricity. There was even a small table that could seat four people up against one side.

"It's gorgeous, Castle. Simply gorgeous. Maybe a little masculine, but gorgeous. This is you?" Kate turned to look at him and saw him grinning widely. She stepped up to him and kissed him deeply. "You've done well, Castle, really well." If the rest of the ship looked anything like this, she could like it here.

She glanced around. Where were all her clothes? "Where's the closet?" She watched him walk over to a panel; he pushed it and then pulled. "A secret room?" Kate walked over and looked inside. Her clothes were hanging just inside it. Then she watched him open a few more hidden panels. She saw more clothes and finally her shoes.

"You did this?" Kate saw him grinning widely yet again. "You're amazing." She kissed him again. "Did you leave room for your clothes?" She had even bought and brought with her another outfit he could wear.

Rick just pointed and Kate saw his meager amount of clothing hanging just inside the door. She resolved to figure out how to get him more clothing. She liked him naked, she truly did. But there were times when he would need to be clothed.

Kate dropped her bag. "Tour?" She really wanted to see the rest of this ship. So far it was amazing.


	14. Chapter 14

**Love**

 **Chapter 14**

Rick took her back outside and onto the main deck. He hid a smile. "You saw the tree. You can talk to it if you want."

"Talk to it?" She squinted at him. "You're joking." She knew people talked to their plants but…she trusted him and started thinking that the tree would actually talk back. It probably had something to do with magic. Kate put her hand on the tree and felt the bark. "Hi." She stood there, listening intently, but didn't hear or feel anything. Then she heard a snicker; it was coming from Castle!

She used the same hand to smack his arm. "I'll get you for that." She had fallen for it hook, line, and sinker. Then she listened and watched as Castle began to laugh. That made her growl at him. She needed a plan to get back at him.

"This way." Rick started walking again. Kate saw a lot of open deck except she saw something toward the front. It actually looked a little familiar. They walked right up next to it.

"Castle, is this a ballista?" It was basically a large crossbow that was mounted to the deck. "A little primitive, isn't it?" It wasn't a howitzer or a rocket launcher or even a .50 cal machine gun.

Rick walked over to the side and Kate saw large arrows mounted to the side of the ship. She watched as he pulled one off and handed it to her. She took it and found it had some weight to it. She shrugged; it was just a big arrow with a big arrow head.

He gave her a clue. "Look closely at the arrow head."

Kate moved it so that she could get a closer look at the arrow head. "Is this glass?" That didn't make much sense. Glass would do very little if any damage at all. Then she saw something because it moved. "It's full of a liquid. …What's in it?" She looked at Castle and watched him use his hands fly apart, moving rapidly from close together with his hands clenched to very far apart with his fingers outspread as he silently spoke a word.

" **Explosion!** " Kate was in awe.

"See the tape on the shaft?" Rick questioned and Kate looked and saw a small amount of green tape wrapped around the shaft. "Green is acid, red is fire." He pointed to all the other arrows mounted to the side of the ship. There were six on each side. Kate looked closer and saw there would be three of each on either side.

She handed it back to him and watched him put it back. She was a little more impressed now. "Are these the standard weapons you use here?"

"For a ship this small, yes. Remember there's no gravity so what you shoot will go perfectly straight until it runs out of energy and finally stops or hits something," he explained.

That had Kate thinking. It also had her looking down at her feet. She was standing on a deck which meant gravity, didn't it? Yet how she had gotten there pointed to no gravity. No up or down, yet there was because she was standing on a deck.

"Things work differently here. You'll get used to it. Back this way down to the lower deck next." Rick walked back to where they'd started.

Kate saw a door under each of the stairs that went up. "What's up there?"

"Another deck with another weapon and access to the bridge." He gestured toward a structure. "That's that round building up there with all the windows."

To Kate it looked like a short tower with a larger round building on top that had openings all around it. She followed Castle through the door and found a set of stairs going down.

Once down the stairs she saw a large open space from the aft of the ship to the bow and from side to side. Except for a few posts and open beams it was wide open. It was also filled with beds on one side and what looked like a kitchen up against the opposite wall and picnic tables in-between.

"Crew quarters, kitchen, and dining area," Rick said.

Kate started counting bunk beds and came up with fourteen beds, three tables, and an ancient-looking though really large range. She moved into the space. The beds each had a mattress, sheets and blankets, and pillows. There were three picnic tables but what piqued her interest was antique cooktop. It looked like it was made of cast iron. "We cook on this thing?" She had no idea how she was going to do that. Then she started looking around. "Where's the wood or coal?" How did they create a fire to get heat?

She bent down to where the oven was and fire box. "It's lit!" She held her hand close and felt the heat. "How?" She saw pots and pans and cooking tools hanging all around it. There were even pots and a single pan already sitting on top. It looked like it had four huge burners and two very small ones in the center. With two ovens on either side and a fire box in the middle.

There was open shelving on either side filled with all kinds of things, including plates and glasses. There was even a shelf above this ancient thing filled with all kinds of bottles and jars in different shapes and sizes, some of which she immediately recognized. They were her spices from home. Castle had really done a lot of work if he had already unpacked all of those boxes.

"How does it work and where's all the food?" Kate walked to the end and then saw a number of her cans of food on open shelving. It wasn't all of it, but it was a start.

Rick was smiling widely as he walked up to the fire box and opened it. "Hi, Little Flame, how're you doing? Come out and say hello to Kate."

Kate had heard him and thought he was talking to himself or something. However, as she watched this tiny something hopped out and stood on top of the stove. The little being was made of fire and had hands, legs, a body, and a head. It was about the size of her hand, if that. "What the heck is that?" She had never seen anything like it.

"This is Little Flame. He's a Fire Elemental from the Elemental Plane of Fire. He's just a baby but he's friendly. Come say hello." Rick was enjoying this immensely.

Kate moved in closer and began to feel his heat. "Hi," she barely squeaked out. "He heats this thing up? …How?" She cursed internally. That had been a stupid question; he obviously heated it up with his body.

"What's an…elemental? Is that right?" she queried.

"The basic elements are earth, wind, fire, and water. I go to his elemental plane and bring back some of his home for him to eat. In exchange he heats up the unit as requested. He was practically dead when I found him. I don't think the Githyanki took very good care of him." Rick might be a demon but what the Githyanki had been doing was pure evil.

"He heats up this thing." Kate still couldn't believe it. This place was really different and her life was really going to change.

"Just tell him what you want heated up and when to stop." Then Rick spoke to the elemental. "Back in you go, Little Flame. I'll get you more food in a couple of days." Kate watched him hop back inside and Castle closed it again.

"This way." Rick walked back toward the stairs. "Oh, and he also heats up the water for showers or anything else. Pipes from the tank below up come up here, he heats those up. They in turn go to the showers or you can use the hot water here," Rick explained as he opened the door located between the doors and stairs that led down from the deck above.

"Down here is all the storage. Dry food storage, frozen food storage, and the water tank." Rick hid his smile as best he could. If Kate loved him she was going to love this.

Kate followed him down and saw a door that looked sealed just to one side with another door across from it. Straight in front of her was a walkway that had crates, barrels, and any number of things strapped to the ship on either side.

"Most of the food you gave me is down here all packed away. This is the freezer." He let Kate open the door.

The second she opened the door she got hit with a wave of cold, really cold. That was when she saw something that had her squealing and jumping back.

"That's Frosty. He keeps the space frozen." Rick grinned at her.

"Another elemental," Kate guessed, getting braver and stepping closer to get a better look.

"He was in a little better shape when I found him. I reached the same deal with him. I go to his plane and bring some back for him to eat and he keeps the room and its contents frozen. Just don't get yourself locked in here." Rick didn't think he knew the difference and would freeze everything and everyone.

"Frosty." Kate watched it bounce all around and everything it touched gained frost on it. She also saw all of the frozen food she had bought in there.

Rick closed the door and turned to open the other door. Kate looked inside and saw a tank about hip high that was filled with water. However, she squinted as she was sure she saw something swimming inside it.

"Let me guess, another elemental?" There was only one left and that was air. Of course she wondered if they had one of those also.

"His name is Little Drop. He's just a baby, too. He provides all the pressure needed to make the water travel through the pipes. I made the same deal with him. These three keep me busy once a month since they each need fed on schedule."

"This is the water supply. Touch it." Rick watched her step into the room and touch it. It instantly started spewing out water in a stream. It wasn't fast and it wasn't heavy, but it didn't stop.

"Let me guess, more magic." She was really going to have to wrap her mind around this. This place had so much of it.

"It will provide water and never stop unless you touch it again, so we need to be careful," he cautioned.

She caught on quickly. "I see! If we leave it running the tank will overflow." If the tank overflowed she didn't want to think how much damage that would cause.

Kate watched him touch it to stop it and then close the door. She started down the walkway that looked to be made of wood and possibly had space below her. She ran her hands over the crates and barrels and saw that each of them were marked. "You did this?" She knew what was in each one just by reading the labels.

Rick nodded. "Some of it. A lot of it was left behind by the Githyanki and whoever attacked them. I added what you gave me.".

Kate saw that what she had given him wasn't even half of what was here. It had her thinking she should have bought a lot more. Maybe they had gotten lucky.

"What's below me in the bilge?" Kate knew enough about ships to use the right word.

"Waste that we'll need to dump it from time to time. It's mostly sealed so you can't smell anything," he replied.

Now Kate knew where the waste from the bathroom, shower and whatever went. "Swell." She was going to give that job to Castle. She didn't want anything to do with it.

She kept walking and reading. "This one says sails."

"I have a spare set for all thirteen sails in case we need them. They're a pain to put in place." Rick had replaced all thirteen of them and had stored another complete set.

"Thirteen." Kate smiled and shook her head. "Our new lucky number, I guess."

He was ready to move on. "Ready to go up top? We have still more to see."

"Yes, please." She had seen enough below deck.

Kate followed Rick back up to the main deck then up one of the two sets of stairs. Up there she found yet another pair of ballista with the same number of large arrows with glass tips. They were mounted between each of the two clerestories that were all glass.

"How big do ships get here?" This ship felt big enough. Granted it was just the two of them, but eighty feet was big.

"This ship had a crew of fourteen. The largest ship I know about can hold hundreds and are several times our size. They don't have our speed, I hope. However, they make up for that in sheer power and number of people. If we tried to attack one we would be destroyed in seconds. I don't want to think what would happen to us." Rick shook his head to clear the thought.

"The captain's cabin is below us. Up there is the bridge." Rick pointed and Kate looked up. It looked a little bigger up close.

Kate followed Rick up a spiral staircase, ending in a large room that had a pedestal in the middle with a large flat top. "What are all these?" She ran her fingers over some of the symbols that were all around it.

"That's Githyanki. This is where you fly the ship. Deploy the sails, one at a time." Rick hovered a finger over those symbols. "Or retract them one at a time." He hovered his fingers over those symbols.

"These direct where you want the ship to go. Touch that symbol there." He indicated one of the two symbols below one of the windows.

She touched it. "WOW!" Kate watched as suddenly the view zoomed out. Then she risked it. She touched it again and watched it zoom even farther out. Then she touched the other symbol and watched it zoom back in. Touching it again had it zoom back in to where it had started.

"Each window?" Kate saw Castle nod. "WOW!" Then she began looking around.

She waved a hand at all the stuff on shelves below the windows. "What's all this?"

"That's the secret of this ship. You take one and place it on the top and it will spread the magic of the item throughout the ship. Each item will affect the ship. You're only limited by your imagination." Rick loved this part. He hadn't actually believed that old man so he tested it.

"I'll show you." He took his ring off. "My ring is magical. It will repair any damage to my body. It will even regrow limbs if one is cut off." Rick placed it on the pedestal then chose a small dagger from a shelf. "Now watch." He used it to cut a small sliver of wood out of the ship.

Kate stared at it as slowly, over time, it repaired it. "NO WAY! It'll do that to whoever wears this ring?" She started to pick it up, then drew her hand away in case the damage to the ship hadn't finished being repaired yet.

She looked at Castle with hope in her eyes. "Have you got another of those?"

"Believe in magic finally?" Rick teased.

"I'm getting there, I'm getting there." He hadn't answered her question, though. "The ring?"

"I only have the one. It cost me a fortune to get it."

Kate's whole demeanor changed. She was suddenly giving off waves of sadness. "In women's lives." He had condemned them to death at the hands of his master.

Rick knew that voice and he hated it. He reached over and hugged her. "That was a different me. It was before I met you. I can't undo what I did. Those women are gone. But we have something from them." They had a Ring of Regeneration.

"Yeah, I suppose." It didn't feel like a fair trade to her. Still there wasn't anything she could do about it. Then a bolt of fear lanced through her.

"What's your master going to say when you stop bringing him women? Will he hunt you down and punish you?" She still might lose him and that terrified her.

"He has to find me first. But yes, if he finds us, he'll make sure we know pain. Pray that he kills us in the first hundred years." Rick didn't think he could ever find them, but he wasn't sure. Magic could do a lot of things.

"FIRST _hundred_ years!?" Kate opened her eyes wide in shock. GOOD GOD!

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate had tried the shower after telling the little guy to heat up the water. That was followed by making love to Castle in their new bed. It felt different, really nice. He was as good as ever if not better. He was hers, all hers.

She was lying on Castle and doodling on his chest. She now had a lot of answers. She knew how his massive cock could fit inside her without ripping her wide open and leaving her bleeding. How she could get a cock that big into her mouth let alone down her throat. It hadn't changed his size or his taste. He was still amazing and the best she had ever had. "Castle… when do we solve my cancer problem?" She didn't want to die.

"We need to create a plan. I need to take you to an upper Plane where I'll leave you. You'll have to go into the city and find a temple. Tell them what you want to buy and pay them, if I have the gold for it. You then read the scrolls and start wearing my ring and that should cure you." It was all he could think of. It had to work or he was going to cut his heart out to prevent the pain of it killing him.

"We can start planning in a bit." Kate reached down and started to play with his cock's head and watched his cock start to enlarge. It was still amazing that his basically normal size cock when soft could get so damn big. "You ready for round four, babe?" she purred.

She squealed when Castle spun them and rolled her beneath him. He grabbed hold of her ankles, pushed her legs toward her head, and place his cock head at her entrance.

"Fuck me, babe. Fill me with that cock of yours." Kate had planned ahead a little. She had managed to get a larger prescription for birth control from her doctor. She knew she would eventually run out. At least right now she had protection.

Kate squeezed her eyes closed as she felt his cock bury itself deep inside her. Then she opened them and looked down. His entire cock was buried deep inside her and she felt completely full. She watched as he pulled almost all the way out as he pulled her legs back down and then rammed it deep inside her as he pushed her legs closer to her head.

"YES! Fuck me, babe, fuck me hard." She was convinced that she loved him. She would love him even more if he saved her from dying a painful death.


	15. Chapter 15

**Love**

 **Chapter 15**

They had a plan and while Kate wasn't happy to be left alone to get the scrolls in a city she had never even heard of before let alone been inside of, she couldn't ask Castle, the demon, to set even one foot inside the city.

"Okay, I'm ready." Kate showed up dressed for the task armed with Castle's notes and his bag of gold that held an amount that she was sure it didn't hold. He'd reminded her yet again that magic was capable of a lot.

Rick shook his head. "Not dressed like that, you're not."

Her eyebrows arched toward her hairline. "And what's wrong with the way I'm dressed?" Kate placed her hands on her hips and glared at him.

He was unaffected. "You need to blend in, not stand out. Also there may be pickpockets in the city. Yes, I know the city is a _Good_ city, but that doesn't mean everyone everywhere is good. You dressed like that says, "Steal from me." You also want to impress the people at The Temple." Rick hated the way she looked. Well, hated it for this task.

"Fine! How am I supposed to be dressed then?" If he was such a know-it-all he should be able to tell her what to wear.

"Go into the crew's quarters. There's a whole lot of left over Githyanki stuff. Pick and choose from that stuff and put something together. And choose a weapon from the pile to take with you."

"I have a weapon." Kate displayed her leg that had her weapon attached to her ankle.

"A weapon from your Plane, yes. You need to show a weapon from a different Plane, though. Pick a sword and strap it to your waist." He heard her grumble all the way to the stairs.

"Cobble together an outfit from this junk." She'd seen all that stuff during her tour. It had looked like junk then and looked like junk now. "You know how much this outfit cost me?" Kate told the ceiling since Castle was up there somewhere.

Still grumbling, she began picking through the pile, tossing things that might work on one of the beds and chucking useless junk into another pile.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate looked it all over and started stripping. She left her black bra and her black panties on. She found a black shirt that mostly fit so she put it on and buttoned it closed. "Hmm." Soon she was standing there in her black shirt, black bra, black panties, black garter belt, and black stockings. If she wanted to impress Castle and make him want her she would be done already, but she was headed for a city.

She found some sturdy, flat-soled, thigh-high, black leather boots and put them on. Much to her surprise they fit like they'd been made for her. Then she found a pair of leather arm and elbow guards; she buckled them around her lower arms, up past her elbows, and onto her upper arm. Then strapped on what looked like bracers to her. This was followed by a pair of fingerless gloves. Every bit of it was black.

She'd come across some knee guards and strapped them into place. These were not black, more silver in color, though still a little dark. Then she tested them by bending her legs to see if she could still run.

She saw a black leather bustier. It at least had cups for her breasts. This thing took time to put on since she had to lace it and cinch it tight. "Shit, I can barely breathe." Kate was thinking maybe she had gotten it too tight.

Next came a skirt that was tattered and torn, but it was black and would at least cover her panties and garter belt. It was in such sad shape that it covered her ass better than the front. Then there was a shoulder piece made of metal. There'd been two but the other one was too damaged and she couldn't use it. Kate chose to put it on her right shoulder and strapped it into place. In addition she strapped on the black leather gorget to protect her throat and spine if need be.

There was a belt that she attached a rectangular leather sheath that held three small daggers. She couldn't use her gun so she needed something. Knives she could at least use.

She found a belt that went over one shoulder and across her chest between her breasts. To this she attached Castle's bag of gold.

"Weapon, huh?" She still didn't see what was so wrong with her gun, but this was a different place. A lot of the weapons had been either big or heavy. There was only one that wasn't too long and light enough that she could use. She attached it to her belt on her left side.

Kate had already braided her hair to hold it in place. Now she added a veil to cover her lower face. "I look like a bandit who's holding up a bank," she groused. All she could see was her eyes and her hair.

One upper leg was bare while the other was covered. Her right upper shoulder had armor while her other shoulder was bare. You could see her stockings and the belt of her garter. Actually she thought she looked a little sexy, in a bank robber sort of way.

Kate tested her getup by pulling her weapon out of the scabbard and running down the hallway and then back again. Satisfied, she went back up to the upper deck to get Castle's approval. She need this to work or she was dead.

"This better?" She stopped, spread her legs a little, while resting her hand on her weapon and the other on her hip.

His eyes dilated; his cock twitched and began to enlarge just a bit. She grinned. "I'll take that as a yes." Maybe she'd done better than she thought.

"Perfect." Rick willed his erection to go down since they didn't have time for that. "Have you got my notes?" She needed those if she was going to find the right Temple.

"SHIT!" Kate ran back down the stairs, recovered the notes she'd laid down, ran back up and showed them to him before hiding them.

He went over the plan. "I'm going to take both of us outside the city then leave you before I'm spotted. You'll have to walk into the city. Search for a Temple that has one of those three symbols on it. Tell them that you want four scrolls, one each of Miracle, Heal, Cure Disease, and Remove Curse. It's all on the notes.

"Use the gold in this little bag to buy them. You should have enough left over to spend the night somewhere safe and comfortable and buy a decent meal. Walk back out to exactly where you left me and summon me. Wait for me to show up and then we'll go home." This ship was home now.

"You'll need to read the scrolls, put on my ring, and wear it for at least a month." That was their plan.

"Magic." Kate was starting to believe but it was still difficult.

"You need to believe, Kate. Maybe, just maybe, you'll be able to cast your own spells. Perhaps there's a sorceress inside you aching to get out. You just needed a reason to believe." He wasn't giving up on her just yet. Magic was everywhere, she just needed to find hers.

Rick stepped in close enough to her to smell the beguiling scent of cherries. "Ready?"

"No, but do I have a choice? If this doesn't work I'm dead." She couldn't help it.

"Please don't talk like that. You mean far too much too me." Rick didn't have a word for how he felt.

Kate stroked his cheek with her hand. "You're sweet and a good man. I mean demon. When I get back you're going to need to show me what you really look like. I'm in love with and making love to a demon. It's time I saw what you look like under all that magic." She reached up to kiss him.

"We'll see. Here we go." Rick took hold of her and Jumped them.

Kate was one place one moment and it felt like she had moved but she didn't really see much. However, everything around her changed. The sun was out and she was standing on a rock. "ON A MOUNTAIN!"

"Go to the city, then be here when you summon me." Rick was gone instantly and hoped no one saw them or Kate was in big trouble.

She'd turned to look and felt Castle leave her. "That's a long walk." She sighed, placed her hand on her weapon, and began walking. She was at least on a road, even if it was a dirt road. It wasn't hard to see that the road continued down the mountain and out to the city that had a river running through the middle of it.

"Is that a wall all the way around it?" This was going to be different.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate was mostly alone for quite a while as she walked down this dirt road toward the city. Eventually she started to notice farms. Acres and acres of crops, some of which were easily recognizable. "I must be getting closer." It meant there were people.

Then she heard it. It was behind her and she turned to look. What she saw had her opening her eyes wide. "A wagon!?" She moved to the side of the road and watched it rattle past her. It was being pulled by a pair of horses. The two boys, and she meant boys since they looked really young, didn't pay her any attention as they passed her by. She saw they had produce and a lot of hay in the back of their wagon.

After they went past Kate got back on the road and kept walking.

It was easily another hour later – she spent that time alone – when she heard more noise behind her. Once again she moved off the road, waiting and watching. This time it was four horses with men on them. As they got closer she could see they were wearing leather, had helmets on, and had large swords at their side. There was also a symbol that each of them wore.

Each group looked the other over. The men on horseback rode past her and Kate got back on the road. She tried to think about what she had seen. What popped up in her head were those old movies with Errol Flynn that she used to watch with her mom. "City guard?" It was the best she could come up with.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate eventually found herself in what felt like a caravan to her. All of the others were wagons carrying mostly produce but a few were carrying what looked like jewelry or woodcarvings.

She was forced to admit, and it hurt to admit it, that Castle had been right. Based on what everyone else was wearing she would had stood out like a sore thumb if she had worn what she'd selected.

She also listened to a number of them talking to each other. It sounded like they all knew each other and they were talking about what they were bringing into the city.

A really thin, almost gaunt, man who was walking next to one of the wagons turned to Kate. "Why are you going into the city?" He knew what everyone else was doing. Maybe she was a potential client before they even got inside.

"I need to find a Temple," Kate replied.

He nodded. "You've come to the right place then. Is there a particular one you wish to find? Silverymoon has several."

Kate at least now had a name for the city. It also had her fishing out her piece of paper that had symbols on it. "One of these."

"That's Helm, or The Watcher, sometimes called The Vigilant One. His Temple is called The House Invincible. Have you been in the city before?" He still might have a customer.

She told the truth. "No, this is my first time."

"You'll love Silverymoon. It's a beautiful city. But you can get lost if you're not careful. It's filled with little parks all over. As a result the city streets wind around and up and down. Still it's clean and one of the better smelling cities. Trust me, you'll see.

"His Temple is on the northern end of the market square; our space is on the southern end. I can at least point you in the right direction once we reach our space," he offered, still hoping once he was set up she would buy something.

"Thank you, I accept. Tell me more about the city." If she kept him talking he might not ask too many questions. Questions she might not be able to answer.

"Silverymoon is the prime signatory state of the Confederation of the Silver Marches and therefore, viewed by many as the capital. It was ruled for centuries by High Lady Alustriel Silverhand, a powerful wizard and one of the Seven Sisters, some of the most powerful individuals on Faerûn and also Chosen of Mystra, the goddess of magic. In 1369 Alustriel stepped down, paving the way for her trusted adviser Taern "Thunderspell" Hornblade to ascend to the city's supreme office. She is now the leader of the entire Confederation.

"The Confederation is made up of a series of Wizard Houses. Combined they keep the city safe from any who would dare attack it. It's one of the safest cities in the region." He paused momentarily when they were all forced to stop.

"Looks like a lot of people are trying to enter today. The Market should be busy. If there's anything you want to buy, that's the place to find it. Unless it's magic. Then you have to go to one of the Temples of one of the Magic Guilds. Try to stay on the north bank of the river if you don't have the gold. It's less expensive there. All of the Magic Guilds are south of the river." He stopped talking and started looking at everyone in line.

Kate watched and saw guards in real armor; they were carrying swords with a few sitting on horseback. She watched as everyone seemed to give a guard something. "You have to pay to get inside the city?" She hadn't been expecting that.

"It's just a copper piece every time you want to enter. It helps pay of the city guards. The Silver Knights are some of the very best. Not a group you want to be cross with, though." He waited until it was his and his family's turn.

Kate fished out a single one of Castle's gold coins and handed it over. In return she got a handful of coins. "Next." He was done with her.

Kate followed the man and his wagon to their sale site. She realized they never actually unloaded their wagon. They sold right off of it. It looked like all produce to her and she didn't think she needed any. Though maybe she would stop on her way out. They could use some perishables on the ship.

"Where do I go?" She wanted to get started since it was beginning to get late.

He pointed to the north. "Stay just to the right of the Market all the way to the end. Your Temple will be on the right. All of us will be back tomorrow. We got a late start today." It also meant he had missed out on a number of potential sales.

"I'll stop by if I have the time." And if she had any gold left…

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate was traveling up the right side of the market that seemed to go on forever. And this city was filled with small parks. There were also either a plant or a tree or both everywhere. It truly was a green city.

She also noticed that the buildings looked to be a mix of wood and stone or both. Not just wood, but old school wood. Old wood that was now faded to gray.

The Market was mostly plots of dirt, but not all of it. It was the same for some of the roads, if that was what you could call some of them. Some were barely wide enough for two people and several of those were paved using stone or bricks. It reminded her a little of pictures of cities in southern states. Especially the older districts that came before cars.

Kate saw all kinds of goods being sold. She even slowed down to look at a few of the stands. A few of the sellers weren't bashful and tried to get her to stop and keep looking. She found it all interesting. It just wasn't what she was there for.

"Maybe if I have any money left." She kept walking since it looked like the sun was starting to get serious about setting.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate saw it. It looked to be one of the larger buildings in the area. It also had its own wall. At least on this side. There was also a gate with someone standing at the entrance. "I hope I don't have to pay to get in here, too." Still she needed in. She was stopped, of course.

"May I help you?" It was his job to direct people to where they needed to be based on what they wanted.

"I'm looking to buy scrolls," Kate said.

"Take the entrance straight ahead, then. Someone there will help you." She never saw the magic that had just scanned her. It was that scan that allowed her entrance. What Kate didn't know was that this would have been about as far as Castle would have ever gotten. He wouldn't even have the ability to Gate out to try and save himself.

She went in the entrance and found she was in a foyer. Since she didn't see anyone she kept walking. It was there that she entered what looked like a church. It had a lot of seating and there was an extremely large statue of someone on the far end. There were symbols incised into the walls. _Holy symbols,_ Kate thought. They were also on her piece of paper.

Kate saw a young woman enter from another room. She stopped not far away. "How can The Temple to Helm help you?"

Her clothes looked perfectly clean and they looked like they had been given to her. Like a uniform or something. "I need to purchase a number of scrolls, please."

She looked Kate over. "If you will follow me." She inclined her head and walked toward the opening she had just come from. Kate followed her and ended up in a small room. It had another of those symbols, a place to sit, and a tiny table, if you could call it that.

"How can I help you?" This was where they were going to make their transaction or imprison Kate, if necessary.

"I have a list. …And I have gold." Kate reached into Castle's bag and pulled out a handful and placed them on the tiny table. It was then that Kate noticed that she had grabbed one of her gold coins.

She took Kate's list, read it, and picked up Kate's gold coin. "Wait here, please." She then left. Kate began to worry. She hadn't meant to grab one of her coins. She had only brought a couple for an emergency.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

She bowed deeply as she approached a much older woman. "Mistress."

"What is it, Zurielle," K'hanowena inquired.

Zurielle handed her Kate's piece of paper. "There is a young woman who wishes to purchase a number of scrolls from us."

K'hanowena rubbed the paper between her fingers. "Interesting." It was like nothing she had ever seen before. Then she read the list. "Very interesting."

"She has gold, Mistress, however, she also had one of these." She dropped Kate's coin into K'hanowena's outstretched hand.

She was immediately intrigued. The coins everyone used were about the size of a penny, but this coin was several times that size. She ran her fingers over all of it. She looked at her acolyte. "This is very interesting. I have never seen anything like it. No coin has this much detail. It is lovely and very interesting. What else?" She needed information.

"Young, I would say mid-to-late twenties. Human female. Her armor chestplate reads as being magical, though light. Her bracers are the same as is the bag she took this coin from, as well as the weapon at her side which is also unusual," Zurielle related.

"Tell me." This woman had her interest.

"It is a foil, Mistress. It has markings I have never seen before. …She reads as Lawful as well as Good." She was not a threat to either of them nor their Temple.

K'hanowena played with Kate's coin again. She handed the paper back to Zurielle. "Bring her to me then retrieve the scrolls she has asked for."

"At once, Mistress." She bowed deeply and left the way she had come.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate was still standing and looking everything over a little more closely. "If you will follow me, please. Mistress K'hanowena, who is the head of our Temple, would like to talk with you. I will get your scrolls while you talk."

That had Kate scooping up the gold coins and putting them back in her bag.

Zurielle said, "May I ask your name?"

"Kate, Kate Beckett." Kate was sure she would get tripped up if she used an alias so used her real name. Besides her chances of ever coming back here were slim.

Kate followed her to yet another room behind a door. This room was much more decorated and looked lived-in. There was a much older woman sitting next to a table. She also saw her coin laying on the table.

"Mistress, this is Kate Beckett. Kate, this is Mistress K'hanowena, the head of our order." She bowed deeply again. "I will retrieve the scrolls." Zurielle backed out of the room.

"Please sit, Kate Beckett. I wish to talk with you." She had several questions.


	16. Chapter 16

**Love**

 **Chapter 16**

Kate sat down and looked at the older woman. Okay, maybe not all that much older. Seeing her reminded Kate that she hadn't brought much skin conditioner. She'd only brought what she already had. She should have known better but her mind was already jumbled with everything she had to juggle before leaving New York City. She used it nightly as part of her routine. This woman could use a bottle of the stuff.

"May I see your sword? Please." K'hanowena held out her hands and waited.

Kate still had her knives so she took her sword out and handed it over. Kate watched her move it around and look it over before handing it back to her. She was just putting it back in her scabbard when the woman spoke. "A Githyanki foil. An interesting choice of weapons. A Githyanki anything is not often seen yet here you are, dripping in Githyanki equipment and magical items, at that." Kate opened her mouth to say something only to see her hold up her hand.

Then she picked up her coin and ran a finger over it. "Talk to me about this. Where did you get it? It is unusual. I have only ever seen one when I was a child. It seems so long ago." A lifetime ago, it felt.

Kate wasn't sure just what to say. "I bought it recently. They used up a lot of my money." Kate didn't notice that she hadn't used the word GOLD.

K'hanowena smiled a little. "What is a young woman like you doing here? Of all the places you could have gone." She never expected to see her here or ever.

"I… I'm sick. I have cancer. It's killing me. I needed a place like this to try and help me." The doctors couldn't really help her. Not like she wanted, not like this place might offer her.

The priestess's head snapped up and she looked at her, her face pale and eyes wide. K'hanowena felt her heart stop then do a few flips. She was dying!? "Where and how long do you have?" She did not want to know the answer but she could not help but ask.

Kate looked at her with new eyes. She had not blinked at the word cancer but she seemed very concerned that she was going to die. "Both breasts, pancreas, stomach, and other places. I have about three months. I truly need those scrolls." It was all she really had.

"Cancer." K'hanowena could scarcely believe it. She had held it together after being told her name. Now she was barely hanging on. There was so much she wanted to say and so much she wanted to do. It was just she had a new life here and could not do anything to risk it. Still she could do all that she could for her. "This is yours. Be careful with it. Around here it is worth quite a lot. There is nothing like it in this world." She handed Kate back her coin. "Only spend them if you absolutely have to," she advised.

Kate took it and put it back in her bag. "Do you have gold coins from this realm?" She needed to make sure Kate had what she needed.

"I have some, enough to buy the scrolls, I hope." Kate still didn't know what they were going to cost her.

That left K'hanowena thinking. What did she have that would help her? "Your weapon is magic, your bag is magic, your bracers are magic, and your chestplate is magic. None of it is overly powerful magic but magic it is, none the less. …Let me think." She had to do something. Something that would not get her into trouble.

There was a knock then the door opened and the young woman entered carrying the scrolls. "Mistress." Zurielle bowed and went to hand the scrolls to her.

"Give them to Kate, please." K'hanowena watched as she handed them to Kate and then left.

"What do I owe for them?" She had to pay her.

K'hanowena waved her hand. "You owe nothing. They are yours." She got up so she could search her room for something. Something she had not thought about in some time.

Kate shook her head. "I can't just take them. They must cost a small fortune." She had to pay for them, not just take them.

"Of course you can. They are my gift to you." She was not going to take Kate's money, not a single copper. Then she found it and walked back over to sit down. "Here, honey, take this. Put it to good use." She reached out to hand it to Kate.

It was a small box that looked suspiciously like an engagement ring box. "I have a boyfriend," Kate said while trying not to insult her.

K'hanowena smiled broadly and chuckled softly. "Good." She was actually very happy to hear that. She could only hope that he was close by and not lost to her. "I am not asking you to marry me. It is for you. Please take it." She needed for her to accept it.

Kate took the box and slowly opened it. What was inside looked suspiciously like an engagement ring. There was something off about it, though. "What is it?"

"It is called the Ring of Winter. It is made of a single piece of ice that will never ever thaw under any circumstances. Put it on…please." K'hanowena waited and watched until she did. "You will learn what it does after wearing it for twenty-four hours. Please do not ever take it off. It is yours as are the scrolls." It was the best she could do for her given the circumstances.

"I don't understand." Kate really didn't understand. She expected to pay for the scrolls but possibly not have enough and have to decide what she could and couldn't afford. Yet here she was being given things and being given advice. It didn't make any sense at all.

"You do not have to. Tell me, what is your young man's name?" K'hanowena would really like to know his name so she could pray for both him and her until the day she once again was granted Empyrean.

Kate thought about that. What were the chances that she would know he was a demon just by his name? Still the truth always won out. Her mother had taught her that. "Richard Castle."

She nodded. She would say his name daily in her prayers. "I trust he is handsome and kind to you?"

Kate beamed. "He's very handsome and he treats me with the utmost kindness. I couldn't love him more. He's amazing." Kate was finally convinced that she was in love with a demon. He just wasn't an evil demon. Certainly not to her.

"I am happy for you." The priestess got up and opened the door, called for Zurielle, and waited for her to arrive. "Give her a room. We are going to protect her tonight. See to it that a guard is assigned to her sleeping quarters.

"Please follow Zurielle, she will show you to your room. You are going to be our guest. Nothing will happen to you here. I will see you for breakfast before you leave. Simply tell the guard if there is anything you need. A midnight snack perhaps, or something to drink. Our wine is quite good."

Kate still didn't understand but she thanked her and followed her through the Temple to a deeper section and into a room. "Someone will come get you for breakfast. You are free to move about the Temple as you wish. There will be a guard outside your sleeping quarters all night. If you need something just ask him. There is food in the kitchen if you are still hungry. You are free to help yourself." K'hanowena left Kate and closed the door behind her.

Kate looked around the room. It was a little spartan and a little small. It had a twin sized bed, a small table, and two chairs. There were symbols like those all over the Temple. The stone walls here, like everywhere else, looked to have plaster on it.

Since she'd been told she could go where she pleased inside the Temple, she opened the door and went looking for the kitchen. She hadn't eaten anything all day. Besides, maybe they had coffee.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate followed someone who escorted her into a room she hadn't gone to. In there she found what was probably everyone. "Kate Beckett, I am pleased you could join us. I trust your sleep was peaceful?" K'hanowena had cast a spell over her room to make sure it was.

"It was very restful, thank you. One of the best I've had in a while." Kate had felt her head hit the pillow and hadn't woken until there was a knock on her door. It had taken her a little while to put everything back on again.

"Good, I am glad. Please help yourself. After this you will be shown the showers so you can clean up if you wish. I am certain you are in a hurry. Do not be bashful, eat what you want. May I suggest a wine?" K'hanowena pointed at a bottle near her. "I am afraid we do not have coffee. I have had to live without it." Living there required a few sacrifices.

Kate chose some bread, cheese, and fruit then filled her glass with wine.

"Where are you headed next?" Could she help her with one last thing?

Kate told the truth without telling her too much. "Up on the mountain. I'm going to meet someone then go home."

"This young man of yours, perhaps?" She could not resist teasing her just a bit.

"Actually, yes." Kate went to work on the fruit.

"You should invite him down. He would be welcome here." She really would love to meet who held Kate's heart.

Kate needed to think fast. "We have a time constraint." She needed to get back about the same time she had left to meet Castle.

"Of course." Kate needed to read those scrolls. Still K'hanowena had thought of one last thing she could do for her. She rose to her feet, looked through a cabinet, and gave Kate a scroll. "Take this across the river on your way out and visit the House of Brondani. Present that to them and let them help you. If you have never seen High Elves before, this will be a first for you." She smiled, betting that Kate had yet to see anyone but humans.

Kate felt her eyebrows go up. "Elves?" Like in real live elves?

K'hanowena smile widely as she went back to her place and sat down. She had managed to really shock her and it was fun to see.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate was escorted to the front gate and was permitted to leave. She barely remembered to travel down the side of the market and stop to get perishables.

She was told where the bridge was so she could cross the river to get to the south side. So the bag of perishables in hand, a new ring on her finger, her scrolls safely tucked away under her clothes, and with her bag of gold, she began walking.

"WHAT THE HELL!?" Kate watched as a wagon carrying she didn't care what start to go up into the air and travel across the river. It went up into the air with nothing under it. "It's flying?" She didn't see any bridge that would get her across.

Then she saw people walking this way. A man clad in robes just came up and walked across the river. He and everyone else went up a little, but they weren't actually on anything.

She didn't have a potion of flying. She didn't even have that other potion Castle had given her that he said they needed a large pool for them to use. So how was she supposed to get across?

Mute, Kate stood there and watched. She really didn't have time for this, but she had already past up the gate she had come in through to get there. She watched as more people and another wagon went to the same spot and went across as easily as they pleased.

"Fine. This magic stuff is nuts." She was sure she was never going to get the hang of it.

Kate walked up and stuck her foot out but didn't put much weight on it so if she suddenly started to fall down and roll into the river she could stop herself. Instead she felt her foot land on something… _solid?_ "No way!" She put the same foot out a little farther and then the other and found herself walking as straight as she could and as slowly as she dared. People and a wagon blew past her like she was standing still.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

She was across and still couldn't believe it. She was even standing in front of the building listed on the scroll. Still not sure what to expect, she opened the door and went inside. She handed her scroll to the first person that stopped her and watched him break the seal and read it. "Follow me, please." He took her in back and showed her a room.

A little later a really old man entered. "The head Priestess of the Helm Temple sent you." He needed to make sure.

"Yes, I don't really know why, but yes." Kate had no idea why she was there.

"I will need your weapon, chestplate, and your bracers," he stated without explanation.

"My what? Why?" She was _wearing_ those things and wasn't stripping in front of him. Though she did have a shirt and bra under her chestplate so he wasn't going to see much.

"The scroll tells me I should increase the magic of those items. Make them more powerful. It will take about an hour if you have the time." He had people who could do take each one and be done quickly.

More powerful!? "Um, sure." Kate started with her bracers, handed him her weapon, and then worked at taking off her chestplate.

"Just wait here." He took the three pieces and left the room.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate didn't have to go back across the river, thankfully, since she had no desire to try that again. That was just way too weird.

They'd given her back the three pieces but they didn't feel any different to her. However, she **had** seen her first real live elf. "I saw a real elf. A real fucking elf." She was still shaking her head. This little trip hadn't turned out anything like she'd expected. Though to be honest she still wasn't sure what to expect.

It took a few hours to reach the road that curled up the mountain. "I should have bought a horse." Kate looked up and just knew her calves were going to be killing her by the time she reached where she was going to summon Castle.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate trudged up the road. "Going down was so much easier," she complained. "My boots couldn't have been magical? Something that made this easier?" She put another foot in front of the other, groaning all the way. "I should have asked for a Gate spell and gone to Castle on my own." Her legs were burning and she was ready to stop, so she did just that.

She found a rock, sat down on it, and began rubbing her aching calves. Even her feet hurt. "You are so rubbing my feet, Castle." Kate resolved that she was going to be pampered when they got home.

"I'd kill for some coffee right now." She sighed longingly. But she got back up and started walking up the mountain. "And just where is everyone? Why is it just me? Because you're stupid enough to walk it, Katie, that's why. Everyone else is smarter than you." Kate kept trudging up the mountain.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"Please let this be far enough away." She was kicking herself that she hadn't marked it before she started the trip down so she could find it easier. Still there was a rock so she sat down on it and watched as the sun started to set.

It was time. "Richard Castle, I need you."

"Kate?" She heard his voice, turned her head, and saw him.

Aching legs and feet aside, she was up instantly and wrapped her arms around him. "Castle! I'm so happy to see you!"

"You summoned me. Can we go now?" He didn't want to be there any longer than he had to.

"Yes, please take me home." Kate was tired and hurting.

She instantly found herself on the Astral Plane and had to walk all the way to their ship. At least it wasn't uphill all the way.

"Did you get them?" Rick needed to know while they walked. He couldn't lose her and if that city didn't have them, they would have to try another. He also needed to know if he had given her enough gold.

"I got all four of them. The priestess just gave them to me. I still don't know why. She even gave me this ring." Kate held up her hand to show him her new ring.

It was pretty and it sort of looked like a diamond, but something was off about it. "So you had enough gold then?" How much did she have left?

"She wouldn't take any payment, she just gave it all to me. Do they do things like that?" She hadn't paid for anything, none of it.

"Castle, she even sent me to see real live elves. They said my chestplate, weapon, and bracers were all magic. The elves made them stronger. Can you believe that?" Kate was still reeling by all that had happened.

"Oh, and they have a way across the river that you can't see. Talk about scary." She wasn't sure she ever wanted to do any of that again.

Rick was silent as he listened to her. His mind had trouble keeping up with all she told him. "So you still have all the gold I gave you?" It was mind-numbing.

"I had to pay the city guard to enter Silverymoon. Oh, and I bought some fresh produce. But I have all the rest." She took the bag off her belt and handed it to him. "It was an amazing city, though. Very pretty, lots and lots of green everywhere." She kept walking while Rick ran his hand through his bag and felt gold coins.

He didn't understand why. "Was there someone you knew there? People don't just give you things. That scroll of Miracle's expensive." The others were relatively cheap.

"How would I know anyone in that city?" Of course she didn't know anyone there. Kate shook her head and kept walking. She still needed to read all of the scrolls and wear his ring to keep from dying. This had to have been worth it.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

K'hanowena was in the main Temple area. The Temple was closed; it was quite late and she was all alone. She looked up at her God. "Please, I beg of you. Keep my Katie safe. Free her from cancer. She is a good girl, always has been. …I wish I knew more about the man in her life. I pray that he loves her until the day they both die. The Astral Plane can be a dangerous place." She murmured a spell and returned to her prayers.

"I love you, Katie, I always will. I wish I could have asked how Jim has been doing. …So many restrictions in this life." The woman who was once known as Johanna Beckett shook her head. She had a new life here and was doing the best she could. "Be safe, my darling girl, my prayers are with you. Always!"


	17. Chapter 17

**Love**

 **Chapter 17**

It had been two days since she'd returned from Silverymoon and the scrolls were still in the captain's cabin. Kate, dressed in her nightshirt, was down in the kitchen. "Okay Hot Stuff, light up just this one for me, please." She tapped one of the smaller burner lids, pulled down a skillet, and set it on it. She got out a bowl and stirred together some powder, a beaten egg, a little cooking oil, evaporated milk, and what was in the tiny can.

She stopped stirring, let a drop of water fall into her pan, and watched it sizzle before evaporating. "That's great, Hot Stuff. Thank you." She hadn't really like the name Castle had given him so she'd given him a new one. Besides she was doing most of the cooking. She knew how to thanks to her mother. It was just that she had never really been into it or felt that she had the time. Now she had lots of time since she didn't have a job anymore.

Kate poured a little oil in the skillet and didn't see Castle walk into the space, however, she did hear him sit down. "What are you making?"

"Pancakes, blueberry pancakes with real blueberries. If what was in the tiny can inside the box are real." They certainly looked real to her.

"How are you coming on your wording?" This was the most important part.

Kate silently pointed to the parchment on the table. That was another thing she wished she'd thought of. How was she to know that this place didn't have real paper or ballpoint pens? Oh they had pens and ink. It was just that they were quill pens made from feathers and bottles of ink.

Rick picked it up and started reading. He had warned her that the Miracle spell needed to be precise. She couldn't use the word _AND_ because that would end the beginning of her sentence and ruin the spell. Also she needed to get her wording perfect. The spell didn't know what you meant, it only knew what you said.

"OH! You mean like if I wish for one hundred bucks I'll get one hundred male deer." She'd seen a commercial like that years ago.

"If I understand you correctly, yes," Rick had answered.

He was studying what she'd written: _I wish my body was completely healthy, free of anything that will cause me harm to the point where all of my body is in perfect physical shape._ That was her third attempt at writing it. He'd rejected the first one. "Don't restrict it to cancer. That might not be the only thing that's affecting your body." That had caused her to write a second one only to have her scrape it off the parchment herself.

"Better, much better. Keep thinking about it. Give it another week. We only have the one scroll," he said as he watched her ladle some batter into the pan then flip it shortly thereafter.

She glanced at Rick with a perplexed look on her face."I still don't understand why the priestess just gave me all this."

"You're sure you didn't recognize her? Not some long lost relative or something?" he asked her yet again.

"No. Why would I know anyone in that city? I still don't understand just where I was." Kate ladled more batter into the skillet. "And this ring." She held up her hand to show it to him again.

"That's a very powerful ring." Castle knew that much.

"You're telling me." She removed her pancake and added more batter. "I suddenly knew what it could do. I still can't believe half of it. It's just a ring." How could something that was a simple ring do what it could do?

 _ **Ring of Winter**_

 _The Ring augments the powers of all other magical items that remain within ten feet of it for more than ten days. The longer the exposure, the more the powers increase._

 _While wearing the Ring, the bearer does not age, effectively conferring immortality if the Ring is never taken off._

 _The Ring can alter the climate in large areas, plunging temperatures below freezing and creating large amounts of ice and snow. It can emit a triple-sized wall of ice in a minute, raise a pillar of ice ten feet across that rises forty feet upward per minute, or spray paralyzing frost on all beings within a sixty-foot-radius sphere in a minute._

 _The Ring can also bring an ice sphere into being around an item or creature. This sphere transfers protective warmth to the interior while emitting intense cold from its exterior with effects equal to a cone of cold on all beings within ten feet of the outer surface. The sphere is armor score four and can withstand fifty-six points of damage in one place before shattering. It suffers double damage from all heat and flame related attacks._

 _The Ring can also create ice spikes ten feet tall, heal its wielder, fashion animated, creature like constructs of ice (including flying ice birds large enough to carry man-sized beings aloft in their claws), and emit large and powerful arms of ice that can grip or strike with the same power as a Bigby's crushing hand._

 _The Ring can shatter metal with its cold or create ice armor in precise areas and amounts, fashioning manacles, shields balanced to a particular user, or collars. The wielder can create a rapier, dagger, or other piercing weapon of ice (equal to the normal weapon, save that all damage is increased due to chilling cold) or conjure icy gusts of wind that can pick up and hurl man-sized or smaller beings around. With some practice, the Ring-wearer can fashion slippery ice sheets to aid in moving stone blocks or create ice pillars, braces, and even stairs._

"She must have known you somehow. No one just gives away something that powerful." Rick still didn't understand. He was a demon and got everything he had the hard way, by either working for it or stealing it. Not that stealing anything was all that easy.

"Here, try them." Kate set a plate of pancakes on the table in front of him. "Put a little butter on each one. This is maple syrup. You can use a little or drown them." She turned back to her own plate, sat down across from him, and used the butter after he was done, drowning her pancakes in sweet, mapley deliciousness after Castle was done pouring some on his.

Rick took a bite, chewed, and swallowed. "Interesting."

"Good interesting or bad interesting?" She had more boxes of pancake mix somewhere down in storage.

"Good enough." He kept eating, trying to taste each little part of it as he finished all of it.

Kate had hoped for a little more enthusiasm, but she took it as a victory. Maybe tomorrow she would try banana nut muffins. But she had something she wanted to talk about now.

"Castle…how long will you live?" It suddenly meant a lot to her. Especially if she was going to live forever if she kept the ring on her finger.

"Demons live a long time barring violent death. The Abyss can be a very dangerous place. Every demon wants to increase his standing. It's a matter of pride and safety, you know? The more important you are, the safer you are. At least until your master decides it's time to conquer another level of the Abyss."

That really didn't answer her question, though based on what she knew about the ring, she was never going to die. Her real fear was that she would age and get older and older, yet never die. If that was the case she would take the stupid thing off and let herself finally pass from this life.

"Does your master control more than one level?" How powerful and evil was he? Even more importantly, did he have the ability to hunt them down?

Rick nodded. "He presently has control over two layers. The 56th level and the 67th level."

Kate tilted her head a little. "That's ten levels' difference. Can he do that?" She was expecting him to say 55th or 57th, not the 67th.

"Yes, he can," he affirmed. "It doesn't work like you're thinking, though. It's not that hard to get from one level to another."

Kate tried to think about that. How they did things here usually escaped her understanding. "Were you involved in the takeover?" Had he fought with everyone else? How close had he come to being killed?

"I was. It took my master weeks to complete the takeover. Everyone from the new level who didn't pledge their loyalty to him was killed. The original master of that level tried to recapture it, however, he lacked the support to defeat my master. We fought for days and days to capture it and keep it. My master tends to split his time between the two levels now."

Wars were bad no matter where you were. She decided she didn't need to know how many people he had killed in support of his master. Even if they were all demons and evil.

There was one thing she was interested in. "Rick, will you show me what you really look like?" She was certain he didn't really look like he appeared to her now. It probably involved magic somehow.

He instantly rejected her request. "Not a good idea."

"I'm not running away. Where would I run to, anyway?" She was effectively trapped there unless she wanted to take her chances in the Astral Plane…all alone.

"You don't understand. If I allow you to see what I look like you may not like it. Once you see the real me the illusion of what you see will be lost. You need to be sure, Kate," Rick warned.

That got her to thinking. She was in love with him, but was part of that love what she saw? It wasn't all but would she love him less if she didn't like what she saw? "I'll think about it." She decided she could wait.

"I'm going to go take a shower. …Care to join me?" She gave him a come-hither smile and arched her eyebrows a couple of time. She was thinking they could have some fun while showering together.

"As enjoyable as that might be, I need to go to three different Elemental Planes today. I need to feed our friends. By the way…Hot Stuff?" He arched an eyebrow at **her**!

She immediately defended her choice. "I like it. Besides I'm the one doing most of the cooking and he responds to it better." Then she cupped her hand beside her mouth. "I think he finds the name hot," she whispered across the table. She thought it boosted his ego a little. He was really young, after all.

Rick conceded the argument and got up. "I need to collect a few things before I go. Even I can't survive coming in contact with what two of them need." The fire was too hot and the cold was too cold. Water was just water and wasn't a problem.

"Just be safe. I know you have a ring but I don't want you hurt." Kate liked him just the way he was.

"I'll do my best. It's usually perfectly safe. Enjoy your shower." He got up and went down into the storage area to collect what he needed before Jumping to the first Elemental Plane.

Kate went over to the stove after rinsing everything and putting them in the sink. Then she tapped the top of the stove. "Get ready to heat up the water in the pipes for me, Hot Stuff." She was thankful that she didn't have to suffer through cold showers.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Rick had come and gone after feeding Hot Stuff. Kate was trying to decide whether to wash the dishes or do something else. There was one thing about this ship that she didn't like: there wasn't a room with exercise equipment. She couldn't work out if there wasn't any equipment. But that didn't mean she couldn't find a mat and do her yoga on the upper deck where there was lots of space. After all, she needed to remain flexible. Castle loved to bend parts of her body while he made love to her. She was betting one of these times her feet really would touch her head while he fucked her.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Rick was finally done and had just finished feeding the little elemental in the water tank. He'd also turned on the dispenser to fill it since it was looking a little low. Then he went looking for her.

He found her up on the main deck wearing almost nothing. What she was doing escaped him. He was momentarily interested in going down to join her and convince her into a little sex. He really enjoyed seeing that much skin. He also enjoyed her touch immensely.

He chose to go up to the bridge instead. With all of the sails down he could see most of the main deck anyway. Plus he could use the window to zoom in on her and watch that way.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Rick was loving watching her, but it was causing the beginning of an erection. He shook his head. No other woman had ever had this effect on him. There was something special about Kate. It only reinforced his desire to never lose her.

He needed to do what he came up there for, so he started walking from window to window, adjusting the view so he could see far out past the last of the asteroids, if he could. He still didn't know just how big the field was. Something like this field was far and few between. The Astral Plane was usually filled with a whole lot of nothing.

Then he saw movement and it had him zooming out as far as he could. "SHIT!" What he saw was possibly real trouble. He moved over to the window where he could see Kate. "KATE! Go down to our room and put on your combat gear. The stuff you wore to the city and come up here. **NOW!** And bring me my sword." He watched her stop what she was doing.

"WHY?" Kate yelled back at him.

He wanted to bellow, " _ **BECAUSE I SAID SO!**_ _"_ But instead he hollered, "There's trouble!" He didn't wait to see if she did what he asked. He went back to watching what he'd seen.

He was still watching it when he finally heard her stomping up the stairs to reach the bridge. "What?" She wanted to know what was so damn important that she had to get into all this gear again. It took time, it was constrictive and she wasn't a fan of it at all. Granted it was all the magical gear she owned and thanks to that woman at the Temple it was even more powerful now. She just didn't know how powerful it was before it had been changed. Let alone how powerful they were now.

Rick pointed at the window. "That."

Kate handed him his sword and looked out the window. What she saw was a ship. Except it wasn't just a ship, it looked about the size of a battleship. Granted she didn't have anything to compare it to to get a size. Though considering how many sails it had, it had to be big.

"Who **is** that?"

"Remember when I told you that the Githyanki are just one of the races that travel the Astral Plane and live here? Well, this is one of them. Each of the three hate the other," he said grimly.

Kate thought about it for a moment. "Great, and here we are in a Githyanki ship and I'm wearing nothing but Githyanki gear. How bad?" Just how much trouble were they in?

"That's a Mind Flayer heavy combat ship. It might have only a dozen Mind Flayers on board, but the others – hundreds of others – are races that they have fight for them. I'm not going to lie to you, it's bad." They were outnumbered and outgunned.

"Mind Flayer?" She'd never heard of them before, which wasn't a real surprise.

"Mind Flayers can control a person, especially a human. Think of it as mind control. They'll force you to come to them. They have these…tentacles under their chin. Once you're close they place your head under their chin. Their tentacles wrap around your head and they then draw your brain out of your head, devouring it. It's painful in the extreme," he explained with a grimace.

"OH, SWELL!" Kate was sure she didn't like the sound of any of that. "What do we do?" They had a ship, could they run away? Since fighting that thing looked like suicide to her.

"They're too big to enter this field. The rocks are too close together. They're probably doing what we are doing…looking." At least Rick hoped they were too big.

"We're parked right next to one. Maybe they won't see us." Maybe they blended into the rock well enough not to be seen.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

They'd been watching for about an hour. "Castle, they're lowering their sails," Kate called out. Rick was looking out other windows to see if there was more than one. He wanted to make sure this ship wasn't just a decoy while other ships sneaked in and attacked whoever they found. Hearing that, he joined her to watch.

Concerned, she asked, "See anything else?"

"So far it's just them. What worries me is why they stopped. They're obviously too big to enter, so what are they up to?" Rick tried to think what they were after besides simply searching the field. "I'm going back to looking around. Keep your eyes on them." He was starting to feel more and more like it was a trap.

"Would your master use these…these Mind Flayers to hunt you down?" Was he the reason behind this?

Rick shook his head, not that Kate could see him. "He would send a powerful demon to capture me if he was angry enough. No, not Mind Flayers." It definitely wasn't his master.

She saw movement. "Castle!"

Rick hurriedly joined her. They both watched for a few minutes. "Scout ships. Easily small enough to sweep this entire field." They were about to be spotted.

"It's not a battleship." As if that wasn't bad enough. "It's a damn carrier!"

He stated the obvious, "We're in trouble."

"You think?!" Kate was sure it was big trouble.

Rick, however, was well ahead of what Kate was thinking. "We see them. They use scouts to flush whoever's in here out. Straight into waiting ships that we haven't spotted yet." It was a perfect plan.

"OH SHIT! It's a damn trap and we're in it." Kate saw it now and didn't like it one bit. "Now what?" Could they fight the scout ships, win, and stay?

"We run and find out just how fast this Githyanki ship really is. I hope you know how to use that thing." Rick meant her foil that was at her hip.

"Screw that thing." Kate ran from the bridge and down to the captain's cabin so she could retrieve her .38 special, six of her dozen loaded speed loaders, and plenty of extra ammunition that went in empty pockets. If she was going to fight, she was going to fight with what she was best at using.


	18. Chapter 18

**Love**

 **Chapter 18**

By the time Kate was back on the bridge she could see out one of the windows and saw a few of the sails stating to deploy. They were red with gold stitching. "Those are gorgeous." She had never seen them before. She looked at him with concern. "Castle, how are we going to get out?"

"The only way I know how. The same way I got it in here." Rick then took his ring off and set it on the pedestal. "In case we get hit."

"Where do you want me?" They had an entire ship and there were only two of them.

"For now, take the rearmost ballista. Load it and get ready to shoot it at someone," he suggested.

"Got it." Kate began to leave only to have him stop her.

"Remember, there's **no** gravity. Gravity's only in your mind. How fast you move and how well you shoot is a matter of the mind. The smarter you are the better you are," Rick reminded her.

"No gravity, got it." Kate started for the stairs only to stop. "Acid or fire?" They had both.

"Your choice, you're the one doing the shooting. The same applies for that weapon of yours." He didn't care which one she shot, only that she was successful.

Kate ran down the stairs, over to the aftmost ballista, and chose an arrow to load. It was simple enough: place the arrow on it and wind it back until she could lock it in place. It was on a center pedestal so she could spin it any direction she chose. She could even go up and down a little.

The only thing was she couldn't see them from here. She didn't have a window with zoom to look through, so she was forced to wait.

While Rick could see both of them, he soon found that to keep them in sight and see where he was going was no easy task. So he decided to pay more attention to where he was going so that he didn't hit anything and take an occasional peek at where they were now. As they got closer and closer he could see that each ship was easily less than half their size. It told him that if this ship held fourteen crewmen, then those two likely held four each. Meaning one to sail and three to board his ship.

Rick had an opening so he stepped to the window that looked out on Kate. "They're getting closer. I estimate four per ship. Only three will be able to leave and try and board us. They're too small to have a weapon." He didn't wait for a reply and went back to sailing.

Kate had heard him; she waved and went back to actively looking. Then she had an idea. It meant changing from an acid arrow to a fire arrow. It cost her a little time but she had a plan. It only took a couple of minutes. However, those two minutes meant when she looked next she saw both of them with ease. "Smaller than I thought." She wanted them a little closer so she waited.

"Come on, come on. Move just a little. That's right, just a little more. …SUCKER!" Kate activated the weapon and didn't wait for the result; she started winding for the next one.

Rick had heard her yell and turned his head around to take a peek. "SHIT, she's off by a mile." He was hoping to at least slow one of them down. He couldn't afford to keep watching, though. He had to watch where he was going.

Kate was still winding when she heard the explosion and saw a sudden bright glow. She stopping to look. As she watched she liked what she saw – a lot. She watched instead of winding. Her arrow was going to miss the ship, all right. As she had planned it hit an asteroid, exploded, and sent it hurtling straight into the ship where to embedded itself. It also sheared its lone mast off the ship causing it to lose half their sails.

"YES!" She celebrated for a moment then started winding. "One down, one to go. That'll teach them to mess with us." She was pretty sure they wouldn't fall for that again so she selected an acid arrow this time.

Hearing Kate yell had Rick taking a quick peek. "I'll be damned." He saw an asteroid embedded in its side and its main upper mast was down. It was out of the fight. She was smarter than he thought, which in the Astral Plane was a good thing.

He went back to looking where he was going. He wanted to add more sails but they still had asteroids to dodge first.

Kate was setting the arrow in place and looked up. "What the hell are those?" There were three of them and they were headed her way. "CASTLE! What are those?" He had zoom and she didn't.

Rick didn't want to look but she was yelling for help. A quick peek told him. "BOARDERS!" He turned back to where they were going.

"Shit!" Not what she needed. It meant the ballista was useless. She abandoned it and hopped up onto the rearmost clerestory so she could get higher up. Once up she drew her weapon and lined up on the first one. "No gravity, no gravity." She just had to shoot straight and she was really good at that.

Kate gave the one farthest to the left three rounds and moved to line up on the guy next to him. She gave him her last three rounds then clicked the cylinder out and ejected the spent rounds. She got out a speed loader, reloaded her revolver, and slapped the cylinder back in place. She looked up again. "OH, CRAP!" The third one was almost to their ship. She fired three quick rounds into him and watched him suddenly fall away. She looked for the other two but didn't see anyone.

"DID I GET THEM ALL!?" She couldn't see anyone but maybe Castle could.

Rick turned his head and gave the area a quick scan. "I just see the ship!" He turned back around and kept his eyes open.

Kate decided she couldn't risk it. Opening her cylinder again, she yanked out her three spent rounds one at a time then pulled out three new rounds and replaced them.

A noise had her looking and she saw someone coming up over the side of the ship. She lined up her shot, put three rounds into him, and watched him spin away into the distance. She felt more than heard a second one; she spun the opposite direction and saw another. Three rounds into him had him spinning away into the distance as well.

Kate couldn't afford to keep looking as she needed to reload. Ejecting the cylinder she ejected the spent rounds, grabbed her second speed loader, and reloaded. Snapping the cylinder back into place, she spun around to look for someone, anyone.

"HANG ON, I'M ADDING SAILS!" Rick thought they were clear enough that he could add the remaining sails and gain some speed.

Kate hopped off the clerestory and grabbed hold of it. She could feel their speed suddenly increasing. They she heard the bad news.

"FORWARD BALLISTA! **NOW!** " They weren't alone. What Rick was afraid of had come to pass. The only bright spot he saw was that there was just the one and it was another scout ship.

"SHIT!" Kate cursed, sprinting flat out. She took the staircase down to the main deck three steps at a time. She blew past the tree and brushed her hand across it. "Stand strong, big guy." Rick had teased her about talking to it, but she didn't see the harm.

She skidded to a stop and saw the problem easily enough. It had her winding as fast as she could. "Acid or fire?" The fire had worked out perfectly, but the asteroids were behind them making them useless. That being the case the best choice was… "Fire." Kate put it in place and spun it to line up on the ship. It was at that moment she saw three specks just leaving the ship. "Great, more boarders." This was getting really old fast.

She aimed at the ship and fired. Then she abandoned the ballista and moved farther forward and aimed her weapon. Kate and Rick watched as her shot headed for the scout ship. He didn't know which she had used, he just wanted that ship taken out of their way. Kate did know and suddenly had high hopes. "How do you guys like fire?" Her shot was headed right for the bow. She saw the ship suddenly start to turn but it was too late. Her shot hit amidships and blew up spectacularly. It engulfed the ship and the three boarders.

Once it faded Kate and Rick saw three bodies still headed their way. "Let's see just how fast you guys are." He left his spot and searched for the scroll he wanted. Then he picked up his ring, put it on, and laid the scroll in its place.

The result was instantaneous. Rick fell back into the window behind him. Kate tumbled backwards until she hit the ballista. "WHAT THE HELL!" She got up and groaned; her back was killing her. "SHIT!" Gritting her teeth against the pain, she scrambled to the front and looked. She didn't see anything. Literally nothing. A light had her looking to her right and behind her. There she saw the burning wreck of the scout ship. She also saw three specks falling farther and farther behind them.

"What happened? Are we really that fast?" If they were, that was really cool. Kate stood up straighter and felt her back scream at her. "I hope I haven't broken anything." She moved over to the port side, trying to see everything and everyone being left behind. Then she looked back at the bridge and waved.

"Interesting weapon." She had a new appreciation for the ancient ballista. Even if it was the arrow tips that did all the damage.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Rick was still sailing as Kate found her way all the way back to the bridge. "Nice work, big guy." She patted the tree along the way.

"What happened?" She reached behind her to rub her lower back which was hurting something fierce. "Suddenly I went flying backwards." Not that she was complaining much. Whatever it was had obviously helped them.

He pointed to the scroll laying on the pedestal. "Scroll of Wind. It added wind to the sails."

"More magic." She wasn't sure if she was ever going to adapt to that much magic. "Nice work, babe." Kate started to reach up to kiss him, however, her back protested mightily and she groaned.

"What's wrong?" Rick had heard that and was immediately concerned.

"I hit my back against the ballista with that sudden burst of speed. My lower back's killing me." She rubbed her back yet again.

He took his ring off and handed it to her. "Put this on. You should be healed by morning."

She slipped it on her finger. "Thanks, babe."

He looked confused. "Babe?" She was beginning to say that more and more.

"It's a term of endearment. It means I love you." This time Kate ignored her back and reached up to give him a quick kiss.

Rick needed to think. He had heard that term, _I love you,_ a few times now. It was just that before it hadn't had much meaning for him. Was that what he thought about Kate? He thought he was ready to say it back, but nothing came out.

"Your weapon appears to be useful. Can it pierce armor?" Those guys were likely wearing simple leather if they were wearing anything.

"Depends on how thick and how close they are. So…maybe." She had regular rounds, nothing special. "Where are we going?" Did he have a destination in mind?

Rick pointed. "That way, far away from that Mind Flayer ship."

Kate hummed her agreement at that idea. "So we just sail until we find something?"

"I don't have much knowledge of this area. I mostly came here just to get away and find some peace from my life. I know a little, but that isn't really all that much." He felt kind of sorry about that.

She shrugged. "So we learn together. It's okay, babe, we'll figure it out. …I need some coffee and maybe a little something extra. Are you good here?" She was ready for a break.

"Give me a minute." Rick left the controls and started a search using each window and zooming way out. "We're clear. Bring me some water when you can, please."

"Be right back." Kate gave him a quick kiss again and headed down all the stairs, carefully, very carefully.

She tapped the cooktop. "Warm up some water for me, would you please, Hot Stuff?"

With coffee that had a touch of whiskey in it and a large glass of water with a little ice in it, she went back up all the stairs. Very carefully.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

They saw nothing and still more nothing until they both needed sleep. Rick retracted all but two of the sails, meaning they slowed way down after the scroll was used up.

He picked up the now blank scroll since its magic had been drained and replaced it with what looked like a bell. "What's that do?" Kate inquired curiously.

"It's an alarm. If anyone but us sets foot on the ship an alarm will sound." It was the best they had. It would mean they had already been boarded, but at least they wouldn't be caught sleeping and be captured.

Rick made it to their cabin first because Kate took all of the steps slowly, not wanting to aggravate her back any more than it already had been.

She went through her nightly routine and wearing her nightshirt, carefully slid onto the bed and snuggled up close to Castle, willing herself to sleep. It had been a very long, very exciting, and very dangerous day.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate woke up and found the bed empty. A sweep of her arm told her the bed was still warm so he hadn't been gone long. She stretched her muscles and quickly noticed that her back felt great. Swinging her legs over the side, she stood up with ease.

"Magic." She held up her hand to look at Castle's ring and shook her head. She headed out of the room, chose the bathroom on the left, and found it empty. The room was only big enough for the toilet (waste was sent to the bilge), a sink inset in a real wood counter, along with a tub that doubled as a shower. Her personal items littered the counter.

Kate washed her face and was drying it when Castle showed up behind her. "How's the back?" She had worn his ring all night so she should be fine again.

"Perfect, thank you." She spun around to face him and found him naked with a huge erection. She didn't know if it was because of her addiction or because she wanted to, but she was soon stroking his cock followed by licking it until it was nice and wet.

Kate took his cock in her mouth and pushed it down her open throat. She didn't care if it was magic or not. His cock was delicious and she knew his come was even more so. "Come for me, Castle. I want to taste you." She took his cock back in her mouth and worked her tongue all over his head. She was soon rewarded with the taste of his come that had her swirling her tongue all through it before finally swallowing all of it. She then stood up, sat on the counter, and spread her legs. "Eat me, lover. Make me come all over your face." She moaned the second his tongue found her outer lips. He really was good at eating her pussy. "Right there. Don't stop, don't ever stop." She could feel her orgasm building. Then suddenly she felt two of his fingers slip inside her just as his tongue started hitting her clit over and over as fast as he could. It had her screaming out her first orgasm.

Castle was slowly licking her lips as she came down from her orgasm. He was a terrific lover. The best she'd ever had. Then she found herself being pulled off the counter, spun around, and made to bend over. Kate knew what was coming and couldn't wait for him to fuck her. "I want you," Rick said and his words went straight to her heart. Thanks to her addiction she had always started their lovemaking. Much like this time. However, him telling her that he wanted her? That was a first. It made her love him more. Castle really wanted her.

She turned her head to watch. His massive cock found her entrance and she moaned as the head of his cock slipped inside her. She could feel herself being filled up totally as he kept pushing. It was magic, but that didn't lessen what she was feeling.

She was already wet and Castle was soon slamming his cock deep inside her and she could hear and feel his body slapping against hers. She could feel her breasts swaying with each stroke. "GOD YES, RICK! FUCK ME!" Kate squeezed her eyes closed as she felt herself building up to her second orgasm of the morning.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate could feel his come leaking out of her pussy and trailing down her leg. She presently had her arms around his neck and was kissing him as she searched his mouth with her tongue.

"You're the best, Castle." She looked into his eyes and saw tears. "What's wrong?" It had been great, but had she some how hurt him?

"I can't afford to lose you." He didn't have a word for it, but what he felt for Kate was something he had never felt before in his life. She meant everything to him.

Now Kate felt tears welling up. "You love me. That's what you're feeling." She loved him so very much.

Rick thought about it. He'd heard women tell him that they loved him before. Feeling it himself was something new. He spoke the words for the first time. "I love you." Then Kate reached up to kiss him soundly. She kissed him with all the passion she could muster. She loved him and now he'd told her that he loved her. It was just what she had always wanted. To find someone she could jump into with and love with all of her heart and be loved back with an equal amount of passion. She'd never dreamed it would be a demon and that they would be living on a Githyanki ship on the Astral Plane.

"I love you, babe. I love you so very much." She stared at his entrancing blue eyes for a moment then went back to kissing him.


	19. Chapter 19

**Love**

 **Chapter 19, Epilogue**

 _I wish my body was completely healthy, free of anything that will cause me harm, where all of my body is in perfect physical shape so that nothing is causing it damage._

Kate read the Miracle scroll and followed that by reading the other three scrolls. Then she wore Rick's ring for the next month. It had been a year since then and she was still alive so they both assumed that it had worked.

They'd also come up with a plan. It was going to be a bit hit or miss, but it just might work.

She'd finished her yoga out on the main deck and was down in their room changing into clothes and shoes. Real clothes and shoes from before she came here. She also had to find something that would still fit her.

Rick walked in and looked her over. Save for a little extra weight, she looked like he remembered her when he first saw her. "Ready?" He wasn't dressed since he wasn't staying.

Kate checked her pockets for what she would need. She had her wallet, her passport, a little bit of money, and her credit card that had access to what was left in her bank account.

She placed a hand on her bump. "I think so." She wasn't really sure just what she was going to tell everyone. She was dead as far as they all knew. Hell, if she hadn't found Castle and come with him she would have been long ago.

And if any of them noticed she was pregnant, she and Rick had had a long talk about how to deal with it.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

 _ **Several months ago**_

 _Kate was late, not really late, but late. Okay, really late, like two months late. "Castle, can we have children?" She had been taking her birth control pills religiously_ _y_ _et she was late._

" _Yes, the child will be half human and half_ _d_ _emon. It_ _'_ _s called a_ _t_ _iefling. They_ _'_ _re barely tolerated in the Abyss. Most are treated very poorly. A few_ _,_ _if they_ _'_ _re lucky_ _,_ _escape the Abyss or find a powerful_ _d_ _emon that will protect them while still using and abusing them." Rick was instantly curious_ _but_ _Kate had still more questions._

" _What will he or she look like?" She_ _'_ _d finally talked him into revealing his true self. It had been a shock and he_ _'_ _d been right. She had never seen the Castle she had fallen in love with ever again._

 _However_ _,_ _she did see that Castle in his eyes every day she saw him and it was enough. He hadn't really changed any. He treated her the same as he always had. He loved her and she could still feel in her heart that she loved him too. "Wings_ _,_ _huh?"_

.o[ **X** ]o.

" _Just tell me_ _,_ _Castle." She was sure she would love the child no matter what, so she wanted to know._

 _Rick took a deep breath. "The_ _ir_ _skin will be a little reddish, a deeper darker reddish, much like my own. Possibly horns though they_ _'_ _ll be small, even smaller than mine most likely. Hair might hide them. Possibly wings though that_ _'_ _s rare. Most definitely a tail. Even that will vary. It will likely be a whip tail like mine though it may be more substantial._

" _After that it will be just how much of you the child has. Are you…_ _are you_ _pregnant?" Rick was ready to burst, if she gave him a reason._

" _Possibly, I'm not really…" Kate stop_ _ped_ _talking when Rick hugged her to_ _o_ _tight and then kissed her deeply._ _She_ _melt_ _ed_ _into him. It looked like he did want children._

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"Will you be alright here alone?" They'd been together for a while now. They had actually seen a few things while sailing around. The most memorable one so far had been a surprise to both of them.

It so far had been the most exciting thing either of them had seen in that year.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

" _CASTLE! GET UP HERE!" Kate had spotted something and even from this distance it looked big, really big._

" _What?" Rick was huffing just a little since he_ _'_ _d sprinted the entire way._ _Dumbfounded, she_ _simply pointed. "I've never seen or heard of anything like it." They watched it swim by, if you could call what it was doing swimming._

" _I have, but it was swimming in water. It looks like a_ _h_ _ump_ _b_ _ack whale._ _But_ _there_ _'_ _s no water._ _How the hell…_ _" The Astral Plane was mostly a whole lot of nothing as they were finding out._

 _They both watched as it_ _leisurely_ _swam past them and paid them no mind. They saw one of its eyes and it didn't look like it had even seen them. It certainly hadn't cared they were there._

" _That was interesting." It was_ _quickly disappearing_ _from view._

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"Remember, summon me when you are ready. Never forget that I love you." He wrapped his arms around her.

"I love you, too," Kate answered then suddenly they were both in a woman's bedroom. She was black and maybe just a little heavyset. Her build was generous and curvy.

"Where are we?" Kate asked her. Only she saw that she only had eyes for Rick's cock since he had an enormous erection as usual. "You try." She was being ignored.

He used his commanding voice. "Tell me where we are."

"Boston." She moved to take hold of his cock. She couldn't help it. She had to touch it, to lick it, to have it fuck her senseless.

"I can make that work. Take care, babe." Kate kissed his cheek and watched him vanish. She turned, strode out of the woman's bedroom, then out into the living room. From there she went to the front door and outside. It was dark out but it was easy to tell that she was downtown in some kind of motel or motel converted to apartments or condos.

"First things first." She needed to see if she could access her bank account so she went in search of the first ATM she could find.

"Well that works, so train or plane. It might be too late for either. I need a taxi after I withdraw a little money." With cash in hand, Kate went in search of a taxi.

"Train station or airport, which ever is closer," she said to the driver and sat back to wait and see where she was going.

"Airport." Kate saw and paid the driver and walked inside. The big question was where could she to go to find a late flight. He parked her out in front of Jet Blue so she started there.

"Flight 1619 leaves at 10:14 pm," the ticket agent told her. Kate checked her watch. She had barely an hour.

"I'll take it." Kate handed over her passport and her credit card and said a lot of no's. No, she didn't have any bags to check. No, she wasn't interested in upgrading. Then she just about had a heart attack when she was told the cost. She knew it would be expensive, but not that expensive. Once she had her boarding pass in hand, she took off running.

She found herself sitting in the tail section, so far back that only the stewardess was behind her. It was going to take her an hour just to get OFF the plane. However, she was headed for NYC. "Newark's close enough, I just have to get across the river." Kate sat back and waited.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

It was well after midnight by the time she cleared the airport and made it to the transportation services. She reasoned that a taxi would cost her a fortune so she chose one of the van airport service companies. It was going to take her longer to get there but it cost a lot less.

It was almost two in the morning and while Kate wasn't tired she was sure he was in bed asleep.

She looked up at the building. This could be bad or amazingly good. Either way she knew there was going to be a lot of questions. "I hope I'm ready for this."

Kate went inside, up the elevator, and stood outside his door. There was no doorbell so she had no choice but to knock. She knocked and knocked and then started pounding. "I'm coming!" She could hear his voice and while she thought she might be ready for this, she wasn't. Her heart was in her throat and it was almost choking her.

She watched the door open and there he stood. He was in a robe; he looked dead tired and maybe he looked like hell. But there he stood. "Hi, Dad." Kate felt the tears flood her eyes. She started crying and was having trouble breathing.

It turned out she was the one that wasn't ready.

Jim wasn't sure what was keeping him standing. "Katie?" It wasn't possible. He hadn't seen her since that one day and hadn't heard from her for over a year. Not even one lousy postcard, let alone a phone call.

"Daddy!" Kate launched herself at him and wrapped her arms around him. She felt like a little kid again. She was crying; she loved him and had missed him terribly.

Jim hugged her back and was squeezing her tight so she couldn't get away. He didn't dare let go of her or she might vanish. Hell, he wasn't sure he wasn't dreaming. "HOW?" His voice was cracking and his tears were falling. His daughter was dead from cancer and yet there she stood. "Katie? Is it really you?"

"I'm here, Dad, I'm here." Kate just kept on crying. She could feel him and hear him crying with her.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"Thanks, Dad." Kate took a cup of his coffee, sipped it, and watched as he sat down across from her. "You probably have a lot of questions." She had told herself just how much she could tell him, desperately wishing she could tell him everything.

"If you mean by **a lot** , you mean the first million, yeah," Jim agreed quickly. "You can start with how you're here. You told me you had terminal cancer and you were going away. **AND** I never heard from you again." He really didn't want to be angry with her, but he was.

"The doctors were wrong, obviously. No one was more surprised than I was. I actually feel great." She hated lying to him but she really couldn't tell the truth. Actually over a year ago she would have said it was crazy and wouldn't believe a word.

Jim wasn't sure he believed her and he felt like she was hiding something, but he also knew his daughter was stubborn and if she wasn't going to talk, she wasn't going to talk.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

He tried to get information a different way. "You're cancer free, you don't call, don't even send a postcard." Jim tried to glare at her and feared that hadn't worked. "What happened to your boyfriend?"

"Sorry about that. It's just we've been traveling a lot and Rick's busy." Busy protecting their ship.

"Rick." Jim couldn't remember if he ever knew his name. His mind had been fixated on his daughter dying of cancer.

"Richard Castle. I love him so very much, Dad. So very much." Kate placed a hand on her baby bump.

Jim had seen her do it and had seen it before when his wife was pregnant with Katie. "Katie? Is there something you want to tell me?"

Kate started smiling. There was actually a whole lot she wanted to tell him and wished that she could. "I'm pregnant. It's one of the reasons we traveled here. I wanted to visit a doctor and find out how the baby's doing." It actually was one of her reasons. Get a sonogram and show it to Castle.

"I'm going to be a grandfather…finally." Kate smiled and chuckled softly. She'd never known her dad wanted to be a grandfather. "So when do I get to walk you down the aisle or have you already gotten married?" Had he been left out?

"We're not married. At least not yet. To be honest we haven't talked about it. We've been busy with other things. But we can see what we can arrange if you want." If this worked they could come back a lot before going home.

"Not want to walk my daughter down the aisle? Of course I do! I need to meet this young man of yours, too." Jim really wanted to meet him and find out what kind of man had stolen his daughter's heart. A heart he'd been certain she had locked away forever.

At first Kate feared what he would see since all she saw anymore was the demon that Castle was. She had broken his illusion and had never seen him again. However, his illusion would work on her dad, so he could if Castle stayed.

"I'll see what I can arrange. We plan on continuing to travel until the baby is born." It wasn't like they had a choice.

"Traveling in what?" If his daughter said a car he was going to give her a piece of his mind.

"We have a ship. It's about eighty feet long with two main decks, lots of storage, and lots of wood. It's nice. It's a sailing ship and I've learned to sail it." In the Astral Plane but he didn't need to know that.

"It would be nice to see your ship, too." He wanted to see just where was his daughter staying.

"I'll see what I can arrange." Like never, most likely, unless something changed drastically.

"How long are you staying?" He was eager to know how long was he going to have his daughter for company.

"I need to make an appointment with a doctor so I'm guessing two or three days." Less if she could get an appointment quickly.

"GREAT! I'll take tomorrow off and we can spend the day together. You can tell me what you've been doing for the last year." Jim had her so he was going to spend time with her.

"You don't have to do that, Dad. You have work."

"My daughter isn't dead and she's in town. So I'm calling in sick tomorrow. Besides, if I don't I'm going to be really sick." Jim smiled at her and watched as she chuckled. "Maybe I'll tell them I have the flu and miss several days of work."

"It'll be nice to spend time with you. Perhaps we can hit that restaurant you and Mom liked so much, if it still exists. The baby's hungry." Kate laid her hand on her bump.

That was another reason this needed to work. She needed to trade in some of her gold coins and go shopping for groceries. They were running really low on supplies. Plus they had nothing for a baby.

She had also found that after she had been cured she ate a lot more and got hungry easily now. She had always thought her lack of appetite was for a different reason. Never because she had cancer.

"I'll make reservations in the morning. Where are you staying?" If she was at a hotel she was going to be canceling it so she could stay with him if he had his way.

"Here, if that's okay, I don't want to impose." She didn't want to impose even if she kind of had to until she had more money.

"Impose? Your old room is still right where it's always been. Along with everything that you left in it. I'll even make something for breakfast." Jim raised his hand when she opened her mouth to protest. "You don't have a choice. My pregnant daughter is **not** cooking for me." He needed to reset his alarm to make sure he got up early.

Kate caved quickly and rose to take her little bag to her old room.

"Sleep well, Katie. It's so good to have you home." Jim hugged her and kissed her head.

"It's good to see you too, Dad." She hugged him back and went into her room.

An hour passed and she hoped her dad was asleep. "Richard Castle, I need you." Like old times he showed up naked and with an erection.

"How did it go?" Rick asked softly since he didn't know where he was.

"Dad's full of questions, naturally. I hate lying to him but what choice do I have?" She didn't see an alternative.

He hugged her. "I'm sorry."

"Dad wants to meet you so next time I summon you, you need to be wearing clothes," she warned.

"I'll put on my very best," Rick said which earned him a swat to his arm. He smiled at his joke. "Your clothes it is." He kept his smile.

"You better mean the clothes I bought you and not my clothes." He chuckled at her and it earned him another swat. "He wants to know when we're getting married, too."

"Married?" It was a term he was unfamiliar with.

"I'll explain it to you later. But since you're here and naked with an erection…" Kate smiled widely and began stoking his cock. She wasn't sure if she'd lost her addiction to his cock or not. Not that it really mattered. At the rate they made love it really didn't matter any longer.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Rick was long gone; Kate had taken a shower and changed into what little she had brought with her that fit the best. Stepping out to the kitchen she found her dad busy at the stove.

"Morning." It was like looking at a different time. She actually found that she missed Hot Stuff. The little guy had gotten pretty good at judging just how much heat she wanted depending on what time of the day it was.

"Morning, Katie-bug, you slept well, I trust." Jim made a quick turn to look at her before going back to cooking.

"I slept fine." Having been worn out by making love to Castle had helped. What hadn't helped had been the mattress. She had gotten used to a Githyanki mattress, not this one. "How much are you making, Dad?" She saw a lot already.

Jim defended himself and his overdoing it just a bit. "My daughter's home and pregnant. Besides, you said the baby was hungry."

"You're going to make me fat." She already feared she was going to be as big as a house as it was. She didn't need her dad adding still more pounds.

"I, ah, may have overstated how long I can be gone from work. I have court date today that I can't miss." His decision to stay away from work had been an emotional decision.

"That's fine, honest. I have a lot of shopping to do myself. I have plenty to keep me busy." Actually the longer he was gone the better.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate was a little tired but there was still so much to do. "Richard Castle, I need you." She watched as he appeared and picked up one of her boxes. "Frozen food, more frozen food, and still more frozen food. There's a lot more so empty those as fast as you can and bring back the boxes." Kate watched him vanish and got the next load of boxes ready.

"Frozen food, frozen food, and frozen food. Same as last time, babe." Kate watched him vanish after dropping his empty boxes for her to use.

"Food, food, and more food." Kate filled his arms with boxes. "That's it for today. I might need to stay longer than we thought. We need so much stuff and you can only do this three times a day." She had a lot to buy and she was quickly using up her gold coins. "Stay safe." She kissed his cheek and watched him vanish.

She put her boxes in her room to hide them and went back out to go shopping. This time for things for the baby. Her dad would understand her need to have such things.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Rick had come and gone twice the next day and he'd listened to what Kate was giving him but didn't actually see any of it until he got home. "Baby food?" He looked it over before putting it on a shelf. He looked at all of it like it was something he didn't want anything to do with. "A baby's supposed to eat this stuff?" For a moment he considered tossing it all over the side, but Kate would kill him if he did that. So onto the shelves it went. Then he went and put his clothes on and waited.

Kate had talked her dad into going and getting real coffee since she couldn't take what he called coffee any longer. "Richard Castle, I need you." She saw him arrive dressed in the first outfit she had ever bought him.

"So handsome." She looked him over. To her he looked handsome and weird. "Magic." She was starting to get the hang of it. It explained how he didn't rip his shirt open with his wings not to mention what he should do to his pants with that tail of his.

"Dad's out getting me coffee, he should be back soon. He **is** going to see the old Castle, right?" she questioned.

"He and everyone else will see what I want them to see. Not to worry." Rick stepped in close, wrapped his arms around her, and kissed her.

Naturally Jim chose that moment to return and spotted his daughter kissing some guy. That caused them to jump apart had Jim smiling.

"DAD!" Kate almost shrieked. "Um, Dad, this is Rick, Rick this is my dad, Jim."

"Sir." Rick actually bowed slightly since to him it showed respect.

"Please, call me Jim. So this is the man that has stolen my daughter's heart." Jim actually liked what he saw. He was larger than he thought he would be. He was certainly handsome and maybe a little taller than he'd envisioned.

"I stole it?" Rick whispered to Kate. He was loud enough that Jim heard him and he grinned. His grin only grew when Katie smacked his arm for it.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Rick remembered something like this when they were dating. But he didn't recognize any of the words being used on this thing. "Don't worry, babe, we're going to order a selection of different things then pick and choose from it all."

Rick listened to it all and didn't know what they were ordering. Szechuan Chicken, Hawaiian Chicken, Beef with Broccoli, Chinese Pork Ribs, white rice, and pork fried rice.

Jim began grilling Rick since he had a number of questions. "So son, what do you do?"

They had talked about this a little before coming so that Rick had answers and didn't have to worry. "I'm effectively retired. It allows me to travel where I want to and see what I want and not have to worry about…money." Rick was all set to say gold and had to stop himself.

"Sounds nice. I'm still working toward retirement. I'm thinking that I'll have to move. New York's just too expensive to retire here." Jim had given it a little thought.

"Move where, Dad?" She only ever saw her dad living in New York.

"I was thinking beach property. Corpus Christi, or maybe Brownsville, or even San Antonio if I can afford it," Jim remarked as their food was delivered.

Kate wasn't sure she like his choices. "Texas. …That's hurricane country."

Jim raised an eyebrow. "The _e_ _ast_ _c_ _oast_ is hurricane country, Katie. I could have said California, but it's far too expensive." He **had** done his homework.

"Earthquakes." Kate shook her head. "One of these days Arizona is going to have beachfront property." That state was a really bad choice.

"So tell me about this boat of yours." Jim was curious since that was where they were living.

"You should see it, Dad. It's eighty feet long, more or less. It has four decks and a bridge. Lots of sails, it's very pretty. You should see the range." Kate spread her arms wide to try and show the size of it. She had no idea what her dad would think of Hot Stuff, Frosty, or Splash.

"A sailing ship. I didn't know you knew anything about sailing, Katie." Jim had been thinking or hoping for a mega yacht. Eighty feet sounded a little small to him. "Pictures?"

She shook her head. "Sorry, maybe next time."

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Three more days of shopping ensued with the last two having Jim returning to work.

"Richard Castle, I need you. …Food, food and food." Kate watched him disappear yet again.

This might be their last day, at least until the next trip. "Richard Castle, I need you." She saw him show up wearing clothes this time.

"How are we doing? What do we still need?" Kate had been buying and buying and was running low on money. They needed to plan for what was going to happen next time.

Rick already had what he thought they needed. "Sheets for the bed, pillows, soap for washing. You know the kitchen better. What do you need there?"

Kate was ready to kick herself. "SHEETS!" How she had forgotten that escaped her. "Some cast iron skillets and Teflon pans would be nice. Our silverware is looking a little worse for wear, too." She tried to think.

"Coffee?" Rick had found that he hated the stuff but Kate loved that crap.

Kate let her forehead rest against his chest. "Coffee." She was losing it, she was sure of it. "Okay, one more day. Then when we come back we can get married and my dad can walk me down the aisle." She was actually looking forward to it. She just wasn't sure what she was going to be wearing. She was using up what money she had fast.

"Married." She had explained it to him. He still wasn't sure why they needed to get married, except she kept talking about it.

"You'll survive it, Castle. Here's the last of what I have. I'll have more tomorrow. Food, food, and spices." She watched him vanish after loading him up.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

"We'll be back, Dad, I promise." Kate hugged him and kissed him.

"I'll be waiting. I still have to walk you down the aisle." Jim just wouldn't leave that alone.

"I promise, when we're ready you'll get the honor." Kate patted his chest.

"And I expect to see my grandchild. It's my job to spoil him or her." Jim was dying to be a grandfather. He just wished his wife could see that day.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate was piloting and was holding a hand on her stomach. She was happy she was past the morning sickness part and into the next phase. Everything was going so well. She was broke but she was happy.

Then a dot in the distance caught her attention so she moved to the window and zoomed in. "CASTLE! GET UP HERE!" She didn't know what it was, but she was betting it was trouble.

Rick was huffing a little since he had sprinted again. "What? Is it the baby?" He laid a protective hand on her belly.

"The baby's fine. I found something." Kate took him to the window. "What is it? I mean, I know it's a rock but it looks like it has a building on it."

He knew just what it was. "It's a Githyanki outpost. Looks like a little one. Maybe a dozen Githyanki or so."

"Oh, swell." It was just what they needed.

"It might be swell." Rick was thinking something.

"How is finding a Githyanki outpost swell?" It sounded like anything but to her.

He shared what he was thinking. "It is if we take it."

"You're not serious. It's Githyanki!" Kate swung her hand at the outpost.

"It will also have magic that might help us. It will definitely have food and we need all the food we can get. Plus you used up all of your gold coins or have you hidden a few away?" Rick twisted his head while he looked at her.

"Maybe a few. The Temple priestess told me they were priceless and worth a lot in Silverymoon. We might need them one day," she said defensively.

"Smart and pretty." Rick smiled at her. "The outpost?" He pushed her.

"A few months ago, maybe. But I can't risk the baby even if there might be something there. Besides if we attack them…" Kate shook her head. She saw it as an evil act.

Rick thought they could take the place. Something that small would be lightly manned and all of the Githyanki would be easy to take. Full of a bunch of rookies will little to no experience.

"Fine, change course. But we remember this place for later, after the baby. Remember, if the Githyanki find us they won't hesitate to attack. You being pregnant would make no difference to them. In fact it might be worse for you.

"They'll make you suffer, have the baby, and terrorize it before killing it in front of your eyes, before finally killing you." Rick knew they wouldn't think twice about it.

"Attack defensively before they attack us." Kate groaned, staring at the rock that looked like it had two little towers and a small building. She did need to protect her baby. "It's hollow, isn't it."

"Most likely, but we have an advantage." Rick was counting on it actually.

"Which is?" She didn't see where they had an advantage.

"We're in a Githyanki scout ship. You'll be wearing Githyanki armor and they won't be expecting **me**." Those were lots of advantages.

Kate huffed out a laugh. "Armor that won't fit me." She placed both hands on her belly.

Rick glared at her. "Have I taught you nothing?"

"How to fight with that stupid magical foil, yes. I prefer my weapon, thank you." She wasn't following.

Then Rick held up her hand to show her that ring she had been given. "What does this do? What happens to your magical gear if it's around this ring for ten days or more and what else does it do? And what makes you think your armor won't fit?" He did his best to get her to see.

"Magic. …My armor will fit me?" She hadn't even tried; she'd had no reason to. Rick stared at her, not saying a word. "We have to wait ten days and come up with a plan." Kate saw him smile widely.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

Kate was dressed just like she had been when she went to Silverymoon save for one small change: she was wearing her gun and had all of her speed loaders on her. She even had her veil covering most of her face. So long as they didn't notice her ears she would look like a Githyanki from a distance.

"This is a bad idea, a really bad idea." She could see all kinds of things going wrong.

"Nice positive attitude." Rick smiled at her which had her glaring at him. "Remember the plan and be ready for anything. You don't have to kill them, just take them out of the fight." He, however, was going to kill everyone he came across.

"Yeah, I know the plan. Be careful, babe. I'm not raising this baby alone." All alone trapped on the Astral Plane.

Kate went down the stairs and all the way to the bow. Rick sailed them closer and closer and began taking down sails so they could dock.

She saw two Githyanki and watched as one of them threw her a line that she caught and used it to tie their ship to what barely passed as a dock area. There was room for two ships.

Rick slipped over the side and flew to the tower that was jutting out of the bottom. Once there he sliced the lone Githyanki almost in two with his sword. Then he went into the base using the tower as access.

Kate needed to get to that building on the side so she hopped over the side and ran, so to speak, to the building, ignoring the two that had helped her dock.

Rick opened one of the doors down a long hallway and found quarters for someone, except it was empty. So were the next two so he skipped the last two and entered the main room.

They'd caught them at a meal. This group was sans armor and had no weapons. Rick chose to use his sword's skill and used Wail of the Banshee. It emitted a terrible soul-wrenching scream that had the Githyanki screaming from the pain before falling dead. "Eight down." He didn't know how many this place had but their odds were getting better.

Kate, meanwhile, entered the room and only saw two Githyanki who looked at her for a moment. They started screaming and rushed her. She raised her weapon and put three rounds in each of them. Then she stopped, ejected her spent casings, used one of her speed loaders, and slapped the cylinder back into place.

She was now ready and looking for trouble. The sound of her gunfire would be noticed. She was proved right when one showed up in a door and looked around until he saw Kate. Even weaponless he charged her and fell after she put three rounds into him.

Kate kept going, she needed to meet up with Castle. She took a peek around a door and saw nothing. Stepping into the room she had her weapon kicked out of her hand. It was a Githyanki and he was already swinging an arm to hit her. She blocked it and kicked him in the ribs and put her hands up ready for his next attempt while bouncing on her feet.

She blocked his wild swing, swung her body, and threw her elbow into his mid-section. Then backed up and spun, sending her foot against his head which had him flying.

Kate went back to bouncing on her feet while holding her hands in front of her and waited. When he charged her she tripped him, grabbed an arm, and twisted it until she heard a bone snap. Then she kicked him in the face and watched him fall.

"Don't mess with a pregnant woman," she told the unconscious Githyanki. She retrieved her gun and moved on.

Rick had a Githyanki step out of a room who got sliced and fell. That was followed at the next door and then the next. He was beginning to think he'd underestimated just how many Githyanki were stationed there.

Kate saw a Githyanki come running down a hallway so she put three rounds in him. She kept walking while she ejected her spent shell casings. At the end she found a room where Castle was in combat with a sword-wielding Githyanki. His sword was nothing like she had ever seen before. It was silver and seemed to not be overly solid, yet he blocked all of Castle's swings.

Then another Githyanki came screaming into the room with a sword. "CASTLE!" He was going to be hit in the back. Her weapon was empty! She had just enough time to raise a hand and point at the Githyanki. She watched as two silvery objects came from her hand and stuck the Githyanki who instantly fell. She was too worried about Castle to question how that had happened. She frantically used a speed loader and drew a bead on the Githyanki still fighting with Castle. Kate followed him as he moved around and waited for an opening. She finally got one and put two rounds into him. It was enough to give Castle an opening and he killed him with a swing.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

An hour later and any living Githyanki were all tied up and locked away inside their own outpost.

"I'll gather the weapons and armor and put them under lock and key while you look for food and any gold coins." They raided it to gain supplies so it was time to find what they came there for.

.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[ **X** ]o.=.x{O}x.=.o[X]o.=.x{O}x.

It was hours later and they were turning away from the outpost. Castle was raising sails while Kate used the windows and zoomed out to see if there was any trouble in the area.

She stopped looking because she had something she wanted to talk about. "I don't understand. I raised a hand and these…things came from my hand and struck the Githyanki."

"Really. You cast your first spell. Impressive." Kate was adapting and coming around.

"But I didn't do anything really. I just pointed at him." She wasn't even sure why she'd done that. She had wanted him to stop and, well…he did.

Rick stepped over to her and hugged her. "Your first step to becoming a sorceress. The power to cast spells is inside you. You just have to tap it and use it. It's what I do."

"Spells." Kate rested against him as they sailed away. "Now what?" She really didn't know how she had done it.

"Practice, lots and lots of practice. Maybe you can teach the baby how to cast spells." Rick grinned as he teased her.

"Yeah, right." She wasn't sure she was ever going to do it again, let alone teach their child.

"Don't short change yourself. You're smart, beautiful, and sexy. And I love you. A feeling I didn't even know existed until I met you. …You are my life, Kate. I can't see myself anywhere else but with you." Rick now understood just what love was and he was reveled in the feeling of it.

Kate felt tears begin to well up. She had found what she had wanted most. Someone to jump into life with and love freely and know that she was loved in return.

"I love you too, babe. So very much. We just have to get married." She saw the look on his face. "You'll like it. It means we'll be together till death do us part." It was the only way she was losing him.

Rick liked the sound of it. "Till death do us part." It meant he'd found someone. There actually was a woman that was his instead of being destined to belong to his former master.

He teased her. "More children?"

"Let's get past having the first one, shall we?" Kate smiled and raised up to kiss him.

Love was such a wonderful thing and now they both had it.


End file.
